Stereotactic Electroencephalography Is Associated With Reduced Pain and Opioid Use When Compared with Subdural Grids: A Case Series

Background: Minimally invasive surgery (MIS) has been shown to decrease length of hospital stay and opioid use.

Objective: To identify whether surgery for epilepsy mapping via MIS stereotactically placed electroencephalography (SEEG) electrodes decreased overall opioid use when compared with craniotomy for EEG grid placement (ECoG).

Methods: Patients who underwent surgery for epilepsy mapping, either SEEG or ECoG, were identified through retrospective chart review from 2015 through 2018. The hospital stay was separated into specific time periods to distinguish opioid use immediately postoperatively, throughout the rest of the stay and at discharge. The total amount of opioids consumed during each period was calculated by transforming all types of opioids into their morphine equivalents (ME). Pain scores were also collected using a modification of the Clinically Aligned Pain Assessment (CAPA) scale. The 2 surgical groups were compared using appropriate statistical tests.

Results: The study identified 43 patients who met the inclusion criteria: 36 underwent SEEG placement and 17 underwent craniotomy grid placement. There was a statistically significant difference in median opioid consumption per hospital stay between the ECoG and the SEEG placement groups, 307.8 vs 71.5 ME, respectively (P = .0011). There was also a significant difference in CAPA scales between the 2 groups (P = .0117).

Conclusion: Opioid use is significantly lower in patients who undergo MIS epilepsy mapping via SEEG compared with those who undergo the more invasive ECoG procedure. As part of efforts to decrease the overall opioid burden, these results should be considered by patients and surgeons when deciding on surgical methods.