We continue to be committed to providing a safe and healthy experience for all of our patients and staff. To ensure this, we will be asking all patients to wear a face-covering to their in-office appointments. We have also implemented increased safety precautions to help stop the spread of COVID-19.

If you are experiencing any COVID-19 symptoms, please call our office at (651) 241-5290 to cancel your appointment or reschedule your Telemedicine visit.

The post COVID-19 Update appeared first on Minnesota Epilepsy Group.

During the ongoing Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, we have implemented a screening process to help combat the spread of the virus.

At the time of check-in, you and those accompanying will be asked if you have a fever, cough, shortness of breath, or sore throat. If you or those accompanying you have any of the symptoms listed, we will reschedule your appointment for a TeleMedicine visit or an in-clinic visit at a later date. We will make every effort to get you seen at the earliest feasible date. For more information about our TeleMedicine appointments, please follow this link: TeleMedicine Visit Guide

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Dr. Penovich has been an integral part of MEG for the last 27 years and we are beyond grateful for her guidance, leadership, and dedication towards care of patients with epilepsy. In her illustrious career to-date, she has made a huge impact on care of women with epilepsy of childbearing age. She has also contributed to and co-authored multiple reports from the landmark studies (NEAD and MONEAD) on the developmental outcomes of children with in-utero exposure to anti-seizure medications and the effects of medications and seizures on pregnancy. These studies have made a paradigm shift in the field of epilepsy. As a neurologist with training in pharmacology, she was one of the principal investigators in most of the clinical trials that produced the new anti-seizure medications since 1984. She has been a prolific speaker on epilepsy and related topics at both local and national levels and presented clinical research nationally and internationally. She has been active with the Epilepsy Foundation of Minnesota on the Board and more recently on the Professional Advisory Board. She has been actively involved in the education of epilepsy among trainee physicians and leads the Neurology Resident Scholar Program. Dr. Penovich has been a vocal patient advocate and worked closely with national societies and patient groups in turning the spotlight on how epilepsy and the stigma attached to the diagnosis affects patient and their family’s lives.

In the next phase of her career, she plans to focus further on education and training for the next generation of neurologists and epilepsy specialists as well as contributing to advocacy efforts and guideline development. Thank you Dr. Penovich for your commitment to our patients, our mission, and to the field of epilepsy. You serve as the guiding light for all of us.

The post Dr. Penovich Retires appeared first on Minnesota Epilepsy Group.

The Minnesota Epilepsy Group, PA congratulates Dr. Agarwal for being recognized as Top Doctor Rising Star for the third consecutive year.
Minnesota Epilepsy Group (MEG) is one of the nation’s largest and most inclusive, NAEC level IV epilepsy centers, providing, state-of-the-art diagnosis and treatment options for individuals of all ages, from infants to older adults. “Our focus is not only to treat seizures with the cutting-edge technology and medications at our disposal, but to understand its far reaching effects on patients life and support them throughout their journey,” says Dr. Agarwal.
In addition to providing various new surgical and neuromodulation options for severe epilepsies across the ages, MEG continues to provide personalized education, counseling, and the opportunity to participate in clinical research trials to our patients. Our dedicated and committed team of epilepsy board certified adult and pediatric neurologists, nurses, neuropsychologist, psychologists, and social workers, all with specialized expertise in the field of epilepsy continue to put our patients first while keeping MEG at the forefront of epilepsy care in the country.

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Using SEEG (Stereoencephalography) technology, Dr. Agarwal and the surgical team at Children’s Hospital of MN were able to locate where the seizures were coming from in Nicole’s brain. After her SEEG,  Nicole had surgery and has been seizure free while slowly weaning off some of her medicines.

“At her last appointment she was brighter and more engaged,” said Dr. Agarwal. “She’ll continue to see improvement as medications are  decreased over the coming year or so.”

In partnership with Children’s Hospital of MN, Minnesota Epilepsy Group is the only Level 4 Epilepsy Center in the state using SEEG and ROSA robot technology.

Read the full story here

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Sarah Payne (left) writes about her daughter, Madelyn, who has been treated at Children’s Minnesota and Minnesota Epilepsy Group for infantile spasms, a specific type of epileptic seizure.

Sarah Payne

We welcomed our sweet baby girl, Madelyn, to this world in October 2013. Around her first birthday, Madelyn started making random, spontaneous movements. My husband and I knew about seizures from our jobs as an EMT and a school psychologist, respectively. Her movements didn’t look like a “typical seizure,” so we started recording them on our phones to show our pediatrician who referred us to a local neurologist.

The neurologist determined Madelyn had epilepsy, which was devastating to hear and even scarier that we didn’t know what form she had. Madelyn never had an episode while under EEG monitoring, making a specific diagnosis difficult. We began trying various oral medications to manage the seizure clusters, but they kept increasing in frequency and duration.

One week before a family vacation to Galveston Island, Texas, it was decided that Madelyn would begin daily ACTH (adrenocorticotropic hormone) injections when we returned home. ACTH is often used to treat infantile spasms, a specific type of epileptic seizure. And, while Madelyn’s symptoms were not typical of infantile spasms, which most often are seen in infants 4 to 6 months of age, it was believed she did, indeed, have them. For the trip, we brought four tubes of Diastat (an emergency medication, injected rectally) to stop her seizures in an emergency. Madelyn had a seizure on each flight. The panic of being on an airplane in this situation was overwhelming. Over that week, we used all four syringes of Diastat, and our first stop when we arrived back in town was the pharmacy for a refill. We felt our lives changing as this became our “normal”: a sense of hyper-vigilance in public places, always looking for the nearest restroom or exit to run to if she began having a seizure, and always having a Diastat within arm’s reach.

Upon returning from Texas, we started the grueling process of administering ACTH. We did this every day for six weeks, but it didn’t work. Holding my 1-year-old down to give her a shot was not the bedtime routine I dreamed of when I thought of becoming a parent. At the time, Madelyn was having five seizure clusters per day, each lasting up to 20 minutes in length. I couldn’t accept that this was how our lives would be.

I then found Children’s Minnesota and Minnesota Epilepsy Group. We met with Dr. Nitin Agarwal and in August 2015, following an overnight EEG study, it was confirmed that Madelyn had infantile spasms. We left Children’s feeling hopeful that we finally had a confirmed diagnosis and confident in the new treatment plan. Madelyn was prescribed Sabril, a different medication to specifically treat infantile spasms. We started the treatment on a Thursday and within a day Madelyn stopped having seizures but became sedated. On Friday morning, I couldn’t wake Madelyn up. We took her to see our doctor, and she was admitted to our local hospital. After two days of sedation, Madelyn was transferred to the St. Paul campus of Children’s Minnesota via ambulance.

Read more here:

https://www.childrensmn.org/2016/05/24/treatment-for-infantile-spasms/

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Patricia Penovich, MD

Congratulations 2014 Service to Humanity Physician Honoree Patricia Penovich, MD

Dr. Penovich specializes in neurology and practices at Minnesota Epilepsy Group in St. Paul, MN. Widely renowned for outstanding epilepsy care, she is passionate about treating women of childbearing age. She joined United Hospital staff in 1994 as medical director of Neurology and Epilepsy. She recently assumed the role of Bentson Chair in Neuroscience at United Hospital.

The Service to Humanity Gala is one of the largest fundraising events in the Twin Cities. In the metro-area funding events are ranked by gross revenue and the Gala is ranked 7th of 25. Since 2003, more than $11 million has been raised to benefit programs and services of United Hospital.

During the Service to Humanity Gala, we present the Service to Humanity Award to both a community member and a physician associated with United Hospital who have demonstrated selfless dedication and exemplary leadership in improving the health and welfare of St. Paul residents and the communities we serve.

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We’re really excited to move to our new Pediatric Epilepsy Unit at Children’s Hospital St. Paul! All rooms are private and even have their own Xbox! This new unit will really help us better care for our epilepsy patients and families. The new unit was made possible with the help of a $3 million donation from Benz family. Click here for the video coverage from KSTP. The new unit will be opening this weekend.

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Minnesota Epilepsy Group is now offering our patients access to their medical information online.  Please contact the clinic to become web-enabled and for additional information.  To access our secure site click the “Patient Portal” button on our main page and sign in with your user name and password provided.

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The purpose of this article is to highlight a recent study which reviews the literature in tremendous detail in order to answer the following questions:

1) Does marijuana improve seizure control?
2) Is marijuana safe?

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3639568/pdf/i1535-7511-13-2-81.pdf

STUDY DESIGN
The authors did a very extensive review of the literature- in order to identify all papers that performed randomized control trials assessing marijuana in the treatment of epilepsy.

RESULTS
The study found: ” four randomized reports which included a total of 48 patients, each of which used cannabidiol as the treatment agent. (Cannabidiol is an important extract of marijuana). One report was an abstract, and another was a letter to the editor. Anti-epileptic drugs were continued in all. Details of randomisation were not included in any study. There was no investigation of whether control and treatment groups were the same or different. All the reports were low quality. ”

As far as seizure control, little information is provided: One study reported two of four treated patients becoming seizure free for 3 months. The other studies either reported no benefit, or the effect was not clearly stated.

CONCLUSIONS
“No reliable conclusions can be drawn at present regarding the efficacy of cannabinoids as a treatment for epilepsy. The dose of 200 to 300 mg daily of cannabidiol was safely administered to small numbers of patients, for generally short periods of time, and so the safety of long term cannabidiol treatment cannot be reliably assessed.”

Thus, at this time, there is a lack of scientific evidence to recommend marijuana for the treatment of epilepsy. To quote the American Epilepsy Society:

“The lack of information does not mean that marijuana is ineffective for epilepsy. It merely means that we do not know if marijuana is a safe and efficacious treatment for epilepsy. Healthcare professionals, patients, and caregivers are reminded that use of marijuana for epilepsy may not be advisable due to lack of information on safety and efficacy, and that, despite some states legalizing the use of medical marijuana, it is against Federal Law to possess or use marijuana.  In addition, little is known about the long term effects of using marijuana in infants and children, and chronic exposure during adolescence has been shown to have lasting negative effects on cognition and mood.  Such safety concerns coupled with a lack of evidence of efficacy in controlled studies result in a risk/benefit ratio that does not support use of marijuana for treatment of seizures at this time. The American Epilepsy Society is supportive of well-designed research to determine the safety and efficacy of marijuana in the treatment of epilepsy.”

https://www.aesnet.org/press-room/consensus-statements/marijuana-and-epilepsy

Please send in your comments on this important topic! Thank you!

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