Present status of surgical intervention for children with intractable seizures.

We present a discussion of recent relevant publications in pediatric epilepsy surgery. In 1998, the Commission on Neurosurgery of the International League Against Epilepsy formed the Subcommission for Pediatric Epilepsy Surgery. Their proposed recommendations are included here. We also discuss updates on identification and selection of children with severe refractory epilepsy. Functional imaging has advanced in recent years as an important adjunct in identifying the epileptogenic zone during the preoperative evaluation. The newer imaging modalities are summarized. Routine positron emission tomography, positron emission tomography with special tracers, and single photon emission computed tomography have proven to be beneficial. Other newer investigative techniques await validation. A number of studies on postoperative outcomes over the past few years have demonstrated the benefits of early surgical treatment for selected children.