surgery is indicated in a small group of children. it usually takes the failure of two or three anti-epileptic medications before a child would be considered as a potential candidate for surgery. in general this happens at least after two or three years of continuous treatment with medications. the failure might be due: to a resistance to the anti-epileptic medications that are available. to the presence of intolerable side effects to the anti-epileptic medication. to a combination of both. since surgical procedures might be very effective in some children once it is clear that the child's epileptic disorder is not responding to treatment with anti-epileptic medications surgery should be considered. young age is not a contraindication for surgery and there is no benefit in waiting for the child to be older. in fact there is considerable evidence that the younger a child is at the time of surgery the better his/her potential will be for good function after the surgery. there is a certain degree of plasticity in the brain that helps with the recovery of functions that can be damaged at the time of surgery. this plasticity is higher in younger than in older children.
who is a candidate for epilepsy surgery?