Guwahati: AIIMS-Guwahati has initiated epilepsy surgery services as part of its comprehensive epilepsy care programme, marking the first government facility in the northeast to establish such a specialised centre. Officials announced on Sunday that the institute successfully performed its inaugural epilepsy surgery for drug-refractory temporal lobe epilepsy, a historic achievement for the region.
Strengthening Neurological Healthcare
AIIMS officials stated that this addition significantly enhances neurological healthcare in the northeast, offering new treatment options for patients with difficult-to-control epilepsy. Epilepsy is one of the most common neurological disorders globally, and in India, there remains a substantial treatment gap, particularly in the northeast, where specialised epilepsy care is limited. Doctors highlighted that many patients continue to experience uncontrolled seizures due to delayed diagnosis, insufficient facilities, social stigma, and lack of access to advanced evaluation and surgical treatment.
Comprehensive Care Under One Roof
The newly added epilepsy surgery service is part of the Epilepsy Programme at AIIMS Guwahati, aimed at bridging this critical gap by providing end-to-end epilepsy care in a single facility. The programme begins with assessment in the dedicated Epilepsy Clinic, where patients undergo detailed clinical evaluation by trained neurologists and epilepsy specialists. According to an AIIMS-Guwahati media release, patients who continue to have seizures despite appropriate medications are further evaluated using long-term video EEG monitoring. This highly specialised investigation simultaneously records brain electrical activity and patient behaviour over extended periods, helping accurately identify the origin of seizures and determine whether epilepsy surgery may be beneficial.
Only Centre in Northeast Offering Integrated Care
The institute is currently the only centre in northeast India offering such comprehensive and integrated epilepsy care, including specialised epilepsy clinics, long-term video EEG monitoring, advanced neuroimaging support, multidisciplinary evaluation, and epilepsy surgery. Prof Ashok Puranik, Executive Director of AIIMS-Guwahati, emphasised that epilepsy is treatable and that patients with uncontrolled seizures should seek timely expert care. He noted that early identification of drug-resistant epilepsy and appropriate surgical evaluation can significantly improve long-term outcomes.
The programme follows a multidisciplinary model involving neurologists, neurosurgeons, neuroradiologists, neuropsychologists, anaesthesiologists, and EEG technologists, ensuring holistic patient management.
