AHS_close_icon_dark_blue
Woman playing with dog for brain health

Care for Epilepsy. Comfort for You.

When you want the most specialized epilepsy care, put your trust in a program that’s received the highest designation. Our programs are designated as a Level 4 center, which means we have access to innovative monitoring and treatment options.

Where Expertise Makes a Difference

Icon | Awarded the Highest Designation in Epilepsy Care

Awarded the Highest Designation in Epilepsy Care

We’re proud to be Central Florida’s only Level 4 center for both adults and children, a recognition reserved for programs providing the highest level of quality and excellence.

Icon | The Only Program for Kids and Adults

The Only Program for Kids and Adults

Choosing an epilepsy program that treats children and adults means you can depend on a continuum of care. Our team includes experts from more than 30 subspecialties, each delivering superior care.

Icon | Unrivaled Experience. Exclusive Technology.

Unrivaled Experience. Exclusive Technology.

Depend on a team that performs the most epilepsy surgeries in Florida, offers the innovative NeuroPace RNS® system and has the only magnetoencephalography (MEG) brain-mapping tool in the state.

Ki Hyeong Lee, MD, MS
Medical Director, Epileptologist
Read Bio
James Baumgartner, MD
Surgical Director, Neurosurgeon
Read Bio
Angel O. Claudio, MD
Epileptologist
Read Bio
Elakkat Dharmaraj Gireesh, MD
Epileptologist
Read Bio
Ammar Hussain, MD
Pediatric Neurologist
Read Bio
Catherine Longa, PhD
Neuropsychologist
Read Bio
Joo Hee Seo, MD, MSc
Epileptologist
Read Bio
Holly J. Skinner, DO
Co-Medical Director, Neurologist
Read Bio
Meet the Team

Unparalleled Treatment for the Unexpected

Our Epilepsy Center

Our epilepsy center is located at AdventHealth Orlando. Our team works hard to stop or lessen your or your loved one’s seizures with various innovative treatment options. We also hope to improve our patients’ quality of life.

How does our epilepsy center work?

Our expert team will create a step-by-step treatment plan designed specifically for you. The team will be there for you through all steps of the process. We will handle your medication needs and seizure control following the initial visit. Throughout the evaluation, surgery and post-operative period, we will assist you with medication changes and refills, as well as problems with seizure control.

During these few months, we will also maintain contact with your neurologist. Three to six months following surgery and after your follow-up appointment at the clinic, you can arrange to resume care with your primary neurologist. If you need to find a neurologist, the team will make every effort to assist you.


If surgery is not an option for you, our team will meet with you and explain the test results. We will also offer you other possible treatment choices for your specific seizure disorder.
 

Our Epilepsy Team is composed of: 

  • Neurologists (Epileptologists)
  • Neurosurgeons
  • Neuroradiologists
  • Neuropsychologists
  • Pathologists
  • Pharmacist
  • Physician assistants, nurse practitioners, and registered nurses
  • EEG/MEG technologists
  • Patient care attendants
  • Social workers
  • Speech/physical/occupational therapists
     

The epilepsy team knows that having a loved one with intractable epilepsy affects the whole family. Each team member will treat your needs, and those of your family, with compassion and respect.

Downloadable Guide
Adult Epilepsy

Seizures are your body’s way of telling you there’s something off. To reset the balance, first we need to determine the cause. As a Level 4 epilepsy center, we have leading-edge diagnostic tools, including NeuroPace Responsive Neurostimulation, 3T MRIs and the only MEG brain-mapping program in Florida. So, whether your epilepsy is a new development or something you’ve lived with for years, we have the tools and expertise to get to the root cause and identify the best ways to treat it. We’ll put all our resources toward helping you live seizure-free, so you can feel whole in body, mind and spirit.

Learning ways to control your seizures is at the top of your list. Helping you control your seizures is our number one priority, too. Some of the ways we might achieve that include:

 

  • Diet — A ketogenic diet is one that’s high in fat and low in carbohydrates. And it’s been shown to help the body produce natural anticonvulsants and control seizures for some people. The AdventHealth Neuroscience Institute offers the only physician-led ketogenic diet program in Florida.
  • Medication — This is the most effective treatment for about two-thirds of people with epilepsy. Currently, there are more than 20 types of epilepsy medications available, and it can take some patience to find one that works for you.
  • NeuroPace RNS® — This small device is implanted just under the scalp, where it records electrical activity in the brain and sends electrical impulses that work to prevent seizures.
  • Surgery — When the best course of action is to remove a small amount of brain tissue where seizures originate or to try to prevent seizures from spreading through the brain, we have a number of advanced, minimally invasive options. 

Today, you have more and better options for managing epilepsy than ever before. And as your care team, we’re here to find the treatment options that work for you, monitoring and managing your condition so that you can get back to living your best life.

RESOURCES
Learn More
Pediatric Epilepsy

If you’re the parent of a child suffering from epilepsy, you’ve probably experienced a feeling of helplessness during a seizure. We’re here to empower you with answers, guidance and innovative treatment options. Take comfort in knowing that we have a state-of-the-art unit with an all-digital video EEG designed for round-the-clock monitoring by specially trained nurses, technicians and pediatric specialists. It allows us to study your child’s seizure activity in real time, improving the accuracy of our diagnosis and effectiveness of our treatment. Learn more about our special abilities in treating childhood epilepsy at the AdventHealth for Children.

Tools and Techniques for Addressing Epilepsy

Seizures aren’t always caused by epilepsy. Sometimes they’re brought on by other factors. At the AdventHealth, formerly Florida Hospital, Neuroscience Institute, our multidisciplinary approach helps assess seizures from a variety of perspectives, so we can gain a precise understanding of your condition and make an accurate diagnosis.

Some of the ways we can assess your condition include:

  • Blood Tests — To screen for genetic and metabolic disorders or conditions such as diabetes, anemia, infections and poisoning
  • Brain Imaging — Computed tomography (CT scans), positron emission tomography (PET scans) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRIs)
  • Electroencephalograms (EEGs) — To measure electrical activity in the brain and possibly reveal abnormalities
  • MEG (Magnetoencephalography) — The first and only incisionless functional brain-imaging technology in the state of Florida
  • Medical History — To see if seizures have occurred before and assess symptoms
  • Neurological Testing — Measuring intellectual capability, reflexes, motor skills and behavior
  • Single Photon Emission Computed Tomography (SPECT) – To show areas of increased brain activity (seizures) related to increased blood flow to these areas.
  • WADA test — also known as the intracarotid sodium amobarbital (ISAP) procedure — To provide information regarding seizure focus proximity to key language or memory areas.
  • Cortical Mapping – To help the team relate seizure location to your key motor, speech or sensory areas.
  • Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI) – To help determine if brain tissue, in the area of seizure focus, can be removed safely without affecting your ability to move your limbs, use language or obtain sensory input.

Other tests for epilepsy include kidney and liver function tests and an examination of spinal fluid. Whatever your special case requires, our experts will personalize a diagnostic and treatment plan for you to move beyond seizures toward whole-person health.

  • Drug-resistant epilepsy
  • New onset seizures
  • Genetic epilepsy
  • Lennox-Gastaut syndrome
  • Tuberous sclerosis (TSC)
  • Tumor related epilepsy
  • AV malformation (AVM)
  • Cavernous hemangioma
  • Stereotactic EEG – This option may be offered if you have intractable focal epilepsy, but the location of seizure onset is uncertain—either the side of seizure onset cannot be identified or the location of seizure onset within a hemisphere cannot be identified.
  • Robotic Assisted Stereotaxic Surgery (ROSA) – It is a robot surgical assistant which acts as a GPS for the doctors to use during surgery to only remove tissue in the precise spot where seizures begin.
  • Laser surgery (LITT) – Laser Interstitial Thermal Therapy, or LITT, does require surgery, but it uses a much smaller incision than typical brain surgery. 
  • Intraoperative MRI – This advanced medical imaging improves surgical outcomes by allowing images to be taken while you are still in the operating room. Thanks to this technology, we ensure the surgery has been successful, minimizing the potential need for a second operation and reducing exposure to radiation in our state-of-the-art neurological suites.
  • Responsive neurostimulator – involves the implantation of a small neurostimulator connected to leads (tiny wires) that are placed in one or two seizure onset areas to prevent seizures from happening.
  • Vagal Nerve Stimulator (VNS) – Surgical placement of a device around the vagus nerve in the neck that helps to control seizures
Location of AdventHealth Medical Group Epilepsy at Orlando.

AdventHealth Medical Group Epilepsy at Orlando


615 E. Princeton St. Suite 540
Orlando, FL, 32803
Directions

407-303-8127

A Community of Support

A strong support system goes a long way. That’s why we’ve put together a comprehensive list of patient services. From support groups and wellness programs to your Care Coordinator and financial assistance tools, you always have helpful resources and compassionate people to lean on. 

Learn More
National Association of Epilepsy Centers Level 4 Epilepsy Center logo.

Awarded the Highest Possible Designation for Epilepsy Care

The National Association of Epilepsy Centers (NAEC) designated AdventHealth as a Level 4 Epilepsy Center, the top designation for epilepsy centers in the nation. Level 4 epilepsy centers have the professional expertise and facilities to provide the highest level medical and surgical evaluation and treatment for patients with complex epilepsy.

ABRET Lab Accreditation Logo

ABRET Accredited

Our EEG Lab has been accredited by ABRET, which encourages and promotes quality technical and clinical standards world-wide for neurodiagnostic laboratories through certification and accreditation.  We are the only lab certified in Central Florida for both adults and children.

Medical professionals going over medical assessments

Partnerships for Peace of Mind

You can feel your best knowing we partner with the best. Teaming up with local, regional and national leaders, we are reimagining neurological treatment to give you even more resources and more confidence in your care.

Learn More
Neuro nurse reviewing medical chart

Your Health Ally All the Way

Your compassionate and knowledgeable Care Coordinator is available to help schedule appointments, thoroughly explain every treatment option and put you in touch with the right resources. You’ll never wonder what’s next, because we’ll be with you every step of the way.

Give Us a Call