Comparison of Spontaneous Brain Activity between Hippocampal Sclerosis and MRI-Negative Temporal Lobe Epilepsy

Motivation: There has been controversy regarding the pathophysiological basis of MRI-negative temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE-N) and its similarities and differences relative to TLE with hippocampal sclerosis (TLE-HS). Goal(s): Static and dynamic abnormalities of spontaneous brain activity (SBA) in TLE-HS and TLE-N were examined. Approach: Six static SBA indicators and corresponding temporal dynamic indicators were calculated using a sliding window approach, then compared. Results: Patterns of change in SBA abnormalities were generally similar between TLE-HS and TLE-N groups; they were more pronounced in the TLE-HS group. VMHC in the hippocampus showed promise for differential diagnosis. Many indicators were correlated with cognition. Impact: The use of static and dynamic metrics can convey a more detailed and reliable description of abnormal neuronal activity, facilitating exploration of epileptic activity and cognitive impairment mechanism in MRI-negative temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE) and TLE with hippocampal sclerosis.