Functional MRI-based connectivity analysis: A promising tool for the investigation of the pathophysiology and comorbidity of epilepsy.

Epilepsy has been recognized as a brain network disorder. Therefore, functional MRI (fMRI)-based connectivity is an ideal technique for exploring the complex effects of epilepsy on the brain. Functional connectivity studies have provided insights into the physiopathogenesis of the epileptic network underlying focal epilepsies, genetic generalized epilepsy, and specific epileptic syndromes. An increasing number of studies have focused on the deleterious effects of epilepsy on other brain networks to help to explain cognitive deficits and psychiatric symptoms. Anti-epileptic treatment studies have yielded information about the side effects and the restoration of functional abnormalities after using the drug. Researchers who have examined predictors of surgical outcomes have suggested that there might be identifiable pre-surgical patterns of functional connectivity that are associated with a greater likelihood of positive cognitive or seizure outcomes. However, knowledge regarding the role of fMRI connectivity remains limited in clinical settings. Further validation through invasive investigations and follow-up studies is required for its reliable application in the clinical management of individual patients.