Programa


Preliminary Symposium Agenda

 

March 21

Start of activities: 01:00PM

Neonatal Seizures

Chairs: Magda L. Nunes and Nick Abend
(Pediatric Commission - Chairs of the Neonatal Task Force)

Session 1: Neonatal Seizures

  • Definitions and Etiologies
  • Semiology
  • Management
  • Predicting Outcomes

Session 2: Status Epilepticus Monitoring and Seizures

  • Status Epilepticus: Current knowledge and New Concepts
  • EEG Monitoring: How and when
  • Neonatal Epilepsy Syndromes: From self-limited to DEEs

Session 3: Neonatal EEG

  • EEG Concepts
  • Normal Patterns
  • Abnormal Patterns
  • aEEG Monitoring

Interactive Case Discussion and Conclusion

  • Case Presentations
  • Participant Case Discussion
  • Take-Home Messages

 

March 22

Developmental and Epileptic Encephalopathies (DEEs)

Chairs: Ingrid Scheffer and Elaine Wirrell
(Pediatric Commission Co-Chairs of Medical Therapies Task Force)

Session 1: Diagnosing and Classifying DEEs

  • Caregiver Introduction – The Diagnostic Journey
  • How Do We Classify DEEs?
    • DEE Syndromes in Infants and Children
    • Etiology-Driven Syndromes
  • Investigations in Children with DEEs: What and When?
  • Neuroimaging helps genetics vs. genetics helps neuroimaging.
  • Panel Discussion and Q&A

Session 2: Important Syndromes – Illustrative Cases

  • Early-Onset Spasms: Genetic or Structural?
    • Case Presentation
    • mTORopathy and Other Genetic-Structural Causes
    • CDKL5 and Other Genetic Causes
  • Recurrent Prolonged Febrile Seizures in Infants
    • SCN1A-Related Epilepsies
    • Q&A
  • Epilepsy with Absence and Myoclonia in Early Life
    • CHD2, SYNGAP1, and Glut1-Related Epilepsies
    • Q&A
  • Frequent Discharges on Sleep EEG
    • Overcalling vs. Overtreating DEE/EE-SWAS from SeLECTS
    • Distinguishing DEE/EE-SWAS from LGS and SeLECTS
 

March 23

Evidence-Based Treatment of DEEs

Chairs: Helen Cross and Jo Wilmshurst

Session 1: Current Anti-Seizure Medications (ASM)

  • What Existing ASM Trials Teach Us and Their Limitations
  • New ILAE Guidelines of  Pediatric Commission for 2025-2026
    • Vigabatrin vs. ACTH vs. Prednisolone
    • Lennox-Gastaut Syndrome
  • What have we learned with Dravet Syndrome? What is missing?

Round Table

Session 2: Advanced Therapies in DEEs

  • The relevance of neuroimaging in epilepsy over the years
  • Pediatric Epilepsy Surgery: the sooner, the better
  • Role of Surgery in DEEs: Is Surgery Precision Medicine?
  • Role of Neuromodulation
  • Role of Ketogenic Diet
  • Personalized Treatment

Session 3: Neurodevelopmental Concerns in DEEs
Chairs: Kette Valente and Julia Jacobs-LeVan

  • Assessing Neurodevelopment in Children with DEEs
  • Diagnosing ASD in DEEs
  • Behavioral and Cognitive Challenges: Intervention Strategies
  • Panel Discussion and Q&A

 

March 24

End of activities: 12:00AM

Precision Medicine Beyond Drugs

Chairs: Helen Cross and Ingrid Scheffer

Session 1: Updates in Precision Medicine: Delineating Outcomes

  • Metrics in Seizures and Clinical Trials Design
  • Metrics in Non-Seizure Outcomes
  • Therapeutic Innovations: What’s on the Horizon?

Session 2: Practical Cases and Challenges

Defining seizures, classification, searching for the etiology and discussing the best treatment

Closing Remarks and Future Directions

  • Case Discussions
  • Future Symposium Goals – 2026 and beyond