Acute and long-term safety of external trigeminal nerve stimulation for drug-resistant epilepsy

Trigeminal nerve stimulation (INS) is a novel therapy for drug-resistant epilepsy. We report in detail the safety of external TNS (eTNS), focusing on acute and long-term heart rate and systolic and diastolic blood pressure in response to TNS from the pilot feasibility study. The data indicate that eTNS of the infraorbital and supraorbital branches of the trigeminal nerve is safe and well tolerated. (C) 2011 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.