About

The Epilepsy Center Brno provides comprehensive care for both adult and pediatric patients with epilepsy, as well as highly specialized, supra-consultative services for individuals with pharmacoresistant epilepsy. The center also offers expert support in complex differential diagnostics and medical assessments.

To fulfill this mission, the center operates dedicated epilepsy outpatient clinics, a specialized 12-bed inpatient epilepsy unit at St. Anne’s University Hospital, and a video-EEG monitoring laboratory with 4+1 beds equipped for continuous 24-hour monitoring. An additional video-EEG monitoring unit with two pediatric beds is operated by the Department of Pediatric Neurology at the Faculty of Medicine, Masaryk University, at Brno University Hospital.

The surgical epilepsy program was established in 1995 following advanced subspecialty training of the medical team abroad in the field of epilepsy surgery.

An interdisciplinary surgical case review board at the Epilepsy Center meets regularly once a week to evaluate candidates for surgical intervention.

Thanks to its current staffing and technical resources, the center is fully equipped to perform the complete range of epilepsy surgical procedures in both adult and pediatric patients.

In addition to their clinical responsibilities, staff at the Epilepsy Center are actively involved in research, as well as in teaching and publishing. The center’s technical infrastructure, staffing, and scope of services meet the criteria set by the Czech Neurological Society, the Czech League Against Epilepsy, and the U.S.-based National Association of Epilepsy Centers for classification as a Level IV Epilepsy Center—the highest level of specialized epilepsy care.

It is the only center of its kind in Moravia and accepts patients from across the Czech Republic, with a significant portion also coming from Slovakia.

In early 2017, the center became a member of EpiCare, a European Reference Network that connects specialized epilepsy centers across Europe.

The center collaborates closely with other specialized institutions across the Czech Republic. Its social and patient-centered activities are coordinated in partnership with the patient advocacy organization “Společnost E.”

Staff members of the Epilepsy Center are actively involved in leadership roles within several professional societies, including the Czech League Against Epilepsy and the Czech Society of Clinical Neurophysiology. They also participate in expert groups such as EpiStop, the national certification board for EEG proficiency, the Scientist Panel on Epilepsy of the European Federation of Neurological Societies (as the Czech representative), and the Subcommission for Epilepsy Surgery of the International League Against Epilepsy.

Continuous professional development is ensured through regular fellowships and training placements at leading international epilepsy centers.

In addition to its clinical and preventive care activities, the expert team at the Epilepsy Center is actively involved in both undergraduate and postgraduate education in the fields of epileptology and EEG. This includes organizing epileptology seminars with international speakers, national congresses in epileptology and neurophysiology, as well as regular educational courses in epileptology and international training programs in epileptology and epilepsy surgery, held under the auspices of the International League Against Epilepsy (ILAE) and EUREPA. The team also takes part in international educational events organized by ILAE, EUREPA, EFNS, and WFN.

In collaboration with the European Federation of Neurological Societies (EFNS), the center provides specialized training placements in epileptology for international neurologists.

To support these academic and educational efforts, a dedicated Educational Epileptology Center was established within the Brno Epilepsy Center in 2003.

The educational program is supervised by Professor MUDr. Ivan Rektor, CSc., and Professor MUDr. Milan Brázdil, Ph.D., under the official endorsement of the Czech League Against Epilepsy.