Epilepsy Surgery
Dr. Barone provides comprehensive surgical care for adults whose seizures are not controlled by medication. As a fellowship-trained epilepsy and functional neurosurgeon, he works within a multidisciplinary epilepsy program to find precisely where seizures begin — including minimally invasive stereo-EEG (sEEG) — and to match each patient to the safest, most effective treatment, from resective surgery to neuromodulation.
Epilepsy surgery pathway
From evaluation to long-term seizure care
Evaluation
Review history, imaging, EEG results, and medication response.
SEEG and mapping
Use video-EEG, imaging, and sEEG when needed to localize where seizures begin, how they spread, and what functions are nearby.
Decision
Choose resection, ablation, neuromodulation, further mapping, or non-surgical care.
Treatment
Carry out the selected procedure with a plan for safety, recovery, and seizure goals.
Follow-up
Track seizure control, medications, recovery, mood, and device settings when needed.
Precision mapping
MRI, video-EEG, neuropsychology, and sEEG when deeper localization is needed.
Tailored treatment
Resection, laser ablation, or neuromodulation selected around seizure anatomy and goals.
Long-term planning
Device programming, follow-up, and medication strategy coordinated with the epilepsy team.
When medication is not enough for epilepsy
About one in three people with epilepsy continue to have seizures despite trying two or more medications. This is called drug-resistant epilepsy, and it is the point at which surgical evaluation should be considered — not as a last resort, but as one of the most effective treatments available. If seizures are affecting your driving, work, independence, or safety, a surgical evaluation can determine whether a procedure could reduce or stop them.
Treatments & procedures
- ✓Comprehensive surgical evaluation for drug-resistant epilepsy
- ✓Stereo-EEG (sEEG) seizure mapping
- ✓Resective and disconnective epilepsy surgery
- ✓Laser ablation (LITT) for epilepsy
- ✓Neuromodulation — RNS, VNS, and DBS for epilepsy
Epilepsy surgery overview
Understanding the epilepsy surgery pathway
In this talk, Dr. Barone explains what epilepsy surgery means, how patients are evaluated, and how different treatment options fit together, including seizure mapping, resection, ablation, and neuromodulation.
Houston Methodist patient story
Janet's path through epilepsy surgery
This Houston Methodist feature follows Janet through the pathway many patients want to understand: evaluation for uncontrolled seizures, sEEG monitoring, temporal lobectomy, and seizure freedom.
Individual results vary. A patient story can show the process, but it cannot predict whether surgery is right for another person.
Conditions & treatments we cover
Drug-Resistant Epilepsy
Epilepsy is "drug-resistant" when seizures continue despite two or more appropriate medications. For these patients, surgical evaluation is one of the most effective next steps — and the earlier it happens, the better.
Learn more →Stereo-EEG (sEEG)
Stereo-EEG is a minimally invasive procedure that uses robot-assisted, image-guided placement of thin depth electrodes to pinpoint exactly where seizures begin — information that makes epilepsy surgery safer and more precise.
Learn more →Temporal Lobectomy & Resective Epilepsy Surgery
Temporal lobectomy and other resective epilepsy surgeries remove carefully mapped seizure-causing tissue for selected patients with drug-resistant focal epilepsy.
Learn more →DBS for Epilepsy
Deep brain stimulation (DBS) for epilepsy is an implantable neuromodulation treatment that can reduce seizure frequency for selected patients whose seizures are not controlled by medication.
Learn more →Responsive Neurostimulation (RNS)
Responsive neurostimulation (RNS) is an implanted, closed-loop system for selected adults with drug-resistant focal epilepsy. It monitors brain activity from seizure-prone areas and delivers brief stimulation when abnormal seizure activity is detected.
Learn more →Vagus Nerve Stimulation (VNS)
Vagus nerve stimulation (VNS) is an implantable neuromodulation treatment used as add-on therapy for selected patients with drug-resistant epilepsy, especially when seizure reduction is needed and brain resection is not the best option.
Learn more →Laser Ablation (LITT) for Epilepsy
Laser interstitial thermal therapy (LITT) is a minimally invasive epilepsy surgery option that uses focused heat to treat selected seizure-causing brain tissue.
Learn more →Request an evaluation with Dr. Barone
New patients and referring physicians are welcome. Patients from outside Houston, across the United States, and internationally are welcome.