Clinical outcomes, quality of life, and costs associated with implantation of vagus nerve stimulation therapy in pediatric patients with drug-resistant epilepsy.

Background: VNS (Vagus Nerve Stimulation Therapy) is approved in the USA to treat refractory epilepsy as adjunctive to antiepileptic drugs (AEDs) in patients ≥12 years with complex partial seizures.

Aims: To evaluate clinical outcomes, quality-adjusted life years (QALY), and costs associated with VNS in pediatric patients with drug-resistant epilepsy in a real-world setting.

Methods: A retrospective analysis was conducted using Medicaid data (USA).

Clinical and economic impact of vagus nerve stimulation therapy in patients with drug-resistant epilepsy.

We evaluated long-term medical and economic benefits of vagus nerve stimulation (VNS) therapy in drug-resistant epilepsy. A pre-post analysis was conducted using multistate Medicaid data (January 1997-June 2009). One thousand six hundred fifty-five patients with one or more neurologist visits with epilepsy diagnoses (ICD-9 345.