Establishment of a Database for Drug-Resistant Epilepsy,Isfahan Comprehensive Epilepsy Center, Iran

Epilepsy is one of the most common diseases of central nervous system (CNS). In Iran, about1,200,000 people suffering from this disease are living; many of them are drug-resistant to whom neurosurgeryfor removing the epileptic zone is suggested. For doing so, a series of preoperative assessments should be doneto identify the epileptic zone. Since for each such patient, a wide variety of data are gathered, it is necessary tostore and compile the data.
In 2005, the Isfahan Comprehensive Epilepsy Center (ICEC) was formed as the first in Iran. Since
then, until 2015, about 1673 patients with drug-resistant epilepsy were admitted in this center.
Findings: For these patients, brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and 24-hour electroencephalography(EEG) monitoring were done. 709 patients were referred for further neuropsychiatric assessments. Epilepsymeeting was made to analyze and decide the method of treatment for these patients, and the data gathered during
these processes were reviewed. About 330 patients were treated surgically, and others left the process. The most
visible outcome of this program was the fact that all the data of all the patients were kept and gathered, 500 items
for each patient.
This data center is of the most comprehensive data centers in Iran. This data center received a greatattention in Iran, and is confirmed by Iranian Ministry of Health and Medical Education as a referral center. Itcan be an infrastructure for a mega-datacenter in future in Iran to be used to study the pattern of brain andbehavior relations.