Mental disorders as an indication for surgical treatment of drug-resistant temporal lobe epilepsy.

This study recruited 82 patients with temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE): 41 men and 41 women, who underwent an open epilepsy surgery to remove the epileptic focus from 1963 to 1970. The patients before surgery were divided into two groups: group I included 49 patients with minor mental disorders and group II included 33 patients with major mental disorders. Features of mental disorders in patients with monotemporal lobe epilepsy were identified. The significance of mental disorders for topical diagnosis of the epileptic focus has been emphasized. The course of mental disorders in patients with TLE after open surgery for epileptic focus removal was carefully monitored. The role of mental disorders as an indication for surgical treatment of TLE has been shown. The patients were followed up for 14±6years.