Recurrent nonstatus generalized seizures alter the developing chicken brain.

PURPOSE Noninvasive magnetic resonance imaging was used to assess the evolution of seizure-induced pathology in epileptic, carrier, and normal chickens. Our objective was to determine whether repetitively evoked seizures in an epileptic fowl model of generalized seizures resulted in altered brain development. METHODS Data were obtained from seizure and control groups at 45, 90, and 180 days after hatching. RESULTS At 180 days, apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) values in the optic tectum and archistriatum of the stimulated epileptic chicks were reduced, whereas ADC values in the nonstimulated group remained unchanged. The mean brain volume of epileptic chickens from the stimulated group was smaller than that from the nonstimulated group at 90 and 180 days. CONCLUSIONS These findings establish that recurrent seizures modify the brain matrix.