Dietary therapies for epilepsy: Future research

Since 1921, dietary therapies have remained valuable options in the treatment of intractable childhood epilepsy. The traditional ketogenic diet has been well demonstrated, including in a recent randomized, controlled trial, as being highly effective. More recent alternative diets such as the medium-chain triglyceride diet, modified Atkins diet, and low-glycemic-index treatment have expanded the use of this modality to more children as well as adults. In this review, we discuss our top 10 most pressing research topics related to the ketogenic diet that warrant future study. As well, two promising ketogenic diet clinical researchers discuss their past and current research to help answer some of these questions.

► The ketogenic diet is being considered and occasionally used for new-onset epilepsies.
► Data suggests that dietary treatments are superior to continuing medications in treatment-resistant epilepsy.
► Early changes in EEG may indicate which patients will be responders to the ketogenic diet.