Imaging Epileptic activity with Spin-Lock fMRI: An exploratory study in first-seizure patients

Motivation: Detecting epileptiform discharges non-invasively in an emergency setting after first seizure is critical for diagnosis and optimized treatment. The Stimulus-Induced Rotary Saturation (SIRS) sequence captures high-frequency oscillating magnetic fields associated with epileptic activity, offering potential diagnostic insights that complement standard EEG. Goal(s): To determine whether SIRS can detect abnormal activity in first-seizure patients compared to healthy controls. Approach: SIRS scans were conducted on 60 healthy controls and 55 first-seizure patients. Signal variance served as a contrast metric, compared statistically across patient and control groups, and by diagnosis. Impact: This work validates a non-BOLD fMRI technique targeting biomarkers of epilepsy, which could aid early diagnosis and treatment strategies by detecting subtle biomarkers of epileptogenic zones inaccessible to standard EEG.