The role of neuropsychological evaluation in epilepsy surgery candidates

Neuropsychological evaluations of preoperative epilepsy surgical candidates have been a routine portion of the multidisciplinary evaluation at most epilepsy centers for decades. Neuropsychology assessments have been explored as a means to predict and identify postoperative cognitive deficits after resections (chiefly temporal lobe), and in numerically quantifying those changes that do occur. In this manuscript, we describe the typical tools used, including tests of general intelligence, tests of language, tests of visuospatial cognition, and tests of verbal memory. Evidence for or against the use of the neuropsychological evaluation as a means to localize seizure onset, or as an adjunct for ictal focus lateralization is also included.