Preface to the Special Issue on Minimally Invasive Pediatric Epilepsy Surgery

The advent of minimally invasive epilepsy surgery has markedly increased the number of epilepsy surgery candidates. A paradigm shift in the selection of candidates for pediatric epilepsy surgery has made this a very exciting time for pediatric epilepsy surgery. Historically, treatment options for medically refractory epilepsy, defined as the failure of two or three appropriate antiseizure medications or disabling seizures (including medication side effects),[1] include a trial of another antiseizure medication, the ketogenic diet or one of its variants, or epilepsy surgery. Traditionally, the surgical options, either a cortical resection or disconnection, especially a resection in the carefully selected patient, had a greater potential for seizure freedom but both required craniotomy.