Danish Epilepsy Centre is a part of the non-for-profit foundation Filadelfia, established in 1897. The Danish Epilepsy Centre in Dianalund is the only hospital in Denmark specialized in the treatment of epilepsy, where all aspects of comprehensive care are represented. People with intractable epilepsy or epilepsy characterized by diagnostic or psychological and social problems are admitted to the hospital. Patients are referred from all parts of Denmark.
Besides the out-patient facilities, the hospital has 67 in-patient beds in the adult and childrens´department, a clinical neurophysiology department, including the Epilepsy Monitoring Unit, a laboratory and the research unit. Residential care is also provided in departments: 49 beds. The total staff of the hospital numbers approximately 405 full-time positions.
The postictal state following a generalised tonic-clonic seizure can be conceived from a pathophysiologic point of view as a short, reversible coma. It bears several of the neurophysiologic hallmarks of coma – including generalised flattening (electrocerebral inactivity). However, the reversible nature of this state offers a unique possibility for studying the underlying phenomena.
Video-EEG recordings including also polygraphic channels (ECG, surface EMG) are analysed quantitatively to gain further insight into the pathophysiology of global suppression of the brain activity.
