Sleep Spindles and Memory in Rolandic Epilepsy

Auditory Stimulation Effect on Spindles and Sleep Dependent Learning in Rolandic Epilepsy

The investigators are recruiting children with Rolandic epilepsy and children without epilepsy (aged 4 years old and above) for a non-invasive brain imaging study using Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI), Magnetoencephalography/Electroencephalography (MEG/EEG), and experimental tasks. The investigators hope to determine the brain circuits and brain rhythms affected in these children and ultimately identify new treatment options for childhood epilepsy patients.

This is a prospective study of epilepsy biomarkers in a total of 100 subjects of ages 4-18. Participants will spend about 5 hours at the Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging. They will undergo training on a memory task concurrent with EEG/MEG recordings. During the EEG, subjects will wear headphones that will deliver a quiet pink noise stimulus intermittently during a nap, or a sham. The auditory stimulus will be calibrated in volume to not cause arousals. After napping, subjects will undergo cognitive testing and memory task testing.

Inclusion Criteria:

• Clinical diagnosis of childhood epilepsy with centrotemporal spikes (CECTS)or Rolandic epilepsy by child neurologist
• Ages 4-18 years
• Has an EEG with sleep activated centrotemporal spikes
• Has had at least 1 focal motor or generalized seizure

Exclusion Criteria:

• Has abnormal brain MRI
• Has other unrelated neurological disease
• Unable to have an MRI/MEG due to claustrophobia, history of frequent vomiting, permanent metal in body (braces), or over MRI weight limit: 350lbs