A Seizure-Free Life Is Possible
If medications don’t control your epilepsy, we can help. With state-of-the-art brain-mapping technology and customized treatment plans, we can bring your seizures under control. Call our Epilepsy Center at (415) 353-2437 for more information or book online below.
 |
Customized Care for Complex Cases
Using state-of-the-art diagnostics, our expert team can pinpoint the source of your seizures and help prevent them or reduce their frequency. If you require additional observation or diagnostics, our epilepsy monitoring unit will give you a detailed picture of where and how seizures occur in your brain, allowing our medical team to find the best treatment strategy for you.
Minimally invasive treatments we offer include:
Vagal nerve stimulation (VNS) reduces the frequency and intensity of seizures when medications aren't effective. An electric pulse generator is placed in the upper part of the chest and connected via wires to the vagus nerve. Electrical signals that travel up the wires to the brain through the vagus nerve can be manually activated to interrupt a seizure that’s just getting started.
Responsive neurostimulation system (RNS) helps prevent seizures via a small, battery-powered "neurostimulator" that’s implanted in the skull to monitor electrical activity in the brain. The neurostimulator connects to slim wires surgically placed in areas of the brain where the seizures originate. When activity that could lead to a seizure is detected, it acts like a pacemaker for the brain, delivering a pulse of electrical stimulation through the wires to stop the seizure before it begins.
Deep brain stimulation (DBS) controls seizures with an implanted device called a “neurostimulator” that works in tandem with electrodes implanted in the brain. The neurostimulator blocks seizures by sending electrical signals to certain parts of the brain where seizures originate.
Your Downloadable Guide to Treating Epilepsy
Explore the effective and innovative treatments for drug-resistant epilepsy offered at UCSF Health. Our team of experts can help determine which one may be a fit for you.
 |
Meet Kimberly
When a sudden onset of up to 70 seizures a day forced Kimberly to give up her adventurous life as a young teacher in China, she turned to UCSF Health for solutions to her medication-resistant epilepsy. With a combined treatment plan of surgical resection and responsive neurostimulation through an implanted device, Kimberly was able to reclaim her life. Today, Kimberly is nearly seizure-free, thanks to the attentive, personalized care provided by her UCSF Health care team.
“UCSF is one of the most amazing hospitals I've been to. I go in and feel like I'm at home.”
 |
Rankings & Achievements
Best in the West and No. 3 in the nation for neurology & neurosurgery
Among the top hospitals in the nation
in the West for number of epilepsy surgeries performed
Accredited level 4 epilepsy center (National Association of Epilepsy Centers)