Baseline characteristics and predictors for early implantation of vagus nerve stimulation therapy in people with drug-resistant epilepsy: Observations from an international prospective outcomes registry (CORE-VNS).
Kwan P., Boffini M., Fahoum F., El Tahry R., O'Brien TJ., Keough K., Boggs J., Goldberg-Stern H., Beraldi F., Giannicola G., Lee Y-C., Sen A., CORE‐VNS Registry Group None.
OBJECTIVE: Vagus nerve stimulation (VNS) Therapy is routinely indicated for people with drug-resistant epilepsy (DRE). We analyzed the baseline characteristics of individuals receiving the recently released VNS models and identified factors associated with early or late implantation. METHODS: The Comprehensive Outcomes Registry of subjects with Epilepsy (CORE-VNS), a prospective observational study evaluating the clinical and psychosocial outcomes of VNS Therapy®, is following participants for up to 60 months after VNS implantation. In this analysis, we used Cox proportional hazards model to identify baseline characteristics associated with the time from diagnosis to first implantation. RESULTS: Of the 819 enrolled, 792 (96.7%) participants implanted with a VNS device were evaluated. 529 (64.6%) underwent the first implantation and 263 (32.1%) a re-implantation. Participants' median age at first implant was 24 years; 492 (62.1%) were ≥18 years old and 166 (20.3%) were