Association of Localizing 18 F-FDG-PET Hypometabolism and Outcome Following Epilepsy Surgery

Localizing 18F-FDG-PET hypometabolism is associated with favorable outcome after epilepsy surgery, irrespective of the presence of an epileptogenic lesion on MRI. The extent of 18F-FDG-PET hypometabolism provides additional information, with diffuse hypometabolism associated with worse surgical outcome than focal 18F-FDG-PET hypometabolism. These findings support the incorporation of 18F-FDG-PET into routine noninvasive investigations for patients being evaluated for epilepsy surgery to improve epileptogenic zone localization and to aid patient selection for surgery.