Education Research: Evaluation of Epilepsy Surgery Education in Epilepsy and Clinical Neurophysiology Fellowship Programs

Abstract

Background and ObjectivesTo assess the scope of surgical epilepsy exposure and training among fellows in Epilepsy and Clinical Neurophysiology (CNP) fellowship programs in the United States. Characteristics associated with increased fellow involvement in epilepsy surgery were evaluated.MethodsA 10-question multiple-choice survey was designed to characterize individual fellowship programs, epilepsy surgery programs, trainee involvement, and assessment of trainee performance. The survey was distributed to program directors of adult Epilepsy and CNP-EEG track fellowships between November 2021 and April 2022. Epilepsy surgery procedures included resective approaches, neurostimulation modalities, and palliative interventions approved for drug-resistant epilepsy. Associations between categorical variables were evaluated using the Fisher exact test.ResultsThere were 37 responses from a total of 72 survey recipients (51% response rate). The majority (68%) of surgical programs performed >30 surgical procedures per year. The range of procedures was overall similar across programs. At most programs, fellows were personally involved in 1–10 (49%) or 11–30 (46%) surgical procedures per year. Institutions with >50 surgical cases/year were more likely to expose fellows to >10 cases/y compared with institutions with volumes ≤50 per year (77% vs 33%,p= 0.017). Fellows had the greatest involvement in presurgical planning with more variable involvement in perioperative and postoperative activities. Competency in surgical management was primarily investigated through faculty assessments (97%), whereas oral (46%) and written (30%) assessments were less frequently used.DiscussionHigh-volume epilepsy surgery centers provide trainees with increased exposure despite also having more fellowship positions. There is variability in surgical epilepsy exposure, trainee involvement, and performance evaluation metrics between institutions. We identify specific areas that programs may focus on to improve fellow competency in the surgical management of epilepsy.