2024 SEEG The Course

Aileen McGonigal is Honorary Professor at the Mater Research Institute, University of Queensland and leads the Epilepsy, Rhythms and Behaviour Research Group. She holds a clinical appointment as Director of Epilepsy Unit, at the Mater Hospital, Brisbane.

Aileen’s clinical research aims to improve patient care through better understanding of epilepsy, particularly for patients with drug-resistant epilepsy who may benefit from surgical intervention. She studies seizures recorded using video and brain electrical activity (EEG, SEEG) and investigates how behaviours relate to brain rhythms. Aileen is also interested in neuropsychiatric aspects of epilepsy, including anxiety and depression.

Aileen chairs the Special Interest Group on SEEG of the American Epilepsy Society (2019-22) and is regularly invited to speak at international conferences. She helps define standards of care in epilepsy through her role in the Task Force on Epilepsy Surgery Networks of the Surgical Therapies Commission of the International League Against Epilepsy (ILAE) (2022-2026), and previously, the ILAE Task Force on Depression within the Neuropsychiatry Commission (2014-2018). She is a member of the Scientific Committee of the French Society of Clinical Neurophysiology and Associate Editor of the English-language journal Neurophysiologie Clinique /Clinical Neurophysiology (Elsevier, 2021 Impact Factor 3.7). She is also a member of the Australian, British, and French chapters of the ILAE.

Aileen studied medicine at the University of Glasgow, UK and undertook neurology and EEG training in the UK. She subsequently worked as a consultant neurologist and epileptologist in Marseille, France at the Timone Hospital as well the Centre St Paul (Henri Gastaut Hospital). She belonged to the Institut de Neurosciences de Systèmes, INSERM & Aix-Marseille University, until moving to Mater Research in 2022.

Dr. McKhann is the Director of Epilepsy Surgery, Brain Mapping for Tumors and Epilepsy, and Adult Hydrocephalus at Columbia University Irving Medical Center / New York Presbyterian Hospital. He has over 20 years of experience at CUIMC / NYP, combining clinical skill and compassionate care to maximize patient outcomes. He is a member of both the Columbia P&S Virginia Apgar Academy of Medical Educators and the P&S Academy of Clinical Excellence. His areas of particular technical expertise include awake brain mapping, epilepsy surgery, low-grade glioma surgery, minimally invasive computer-guided microneurosurgery, and stereotactic laser ablation for tumors and epilepsy.

Dr. McKhann also works as a translational neuroscientist, directing the Epilepsy Neurophysiology Laboratory, helping lead the multi-departmental study of Cognitive Neurophysiology together with Catherine Schevon MD, PhD and Charles Schroeder PhD, and collaborating extensively with the Gabriele Bartoli Brain Tumor Research Laboratory. His basic and clinical research has been funded by the National Institutes of Health, the American Association of Neurological Surgeons, the Klingenstein Foundation, the Charles A. Dana Foundation, the New York Academy of Medicine, Parents Against Childhood Epilepsy, the Irving Center for Clinical Research, CURE, and the Tuberous Sclerosis Alliance.

Dr. McKhann graduated Phi Beta Kappa and Magna Cum Laude from Duke University, with Research Honors for his investigations into brain tumor immunobiology. He attended Yale School of Medicine, where he was AOA, Cum Laude, a Farr Scholar, and one of five recipients of the medical school’s highest thesis award. Dr. McKhann trained in Neurological Surgery at the University of Washington, as well as at Atkinson Morley’s Hospital in Wimbledon, England.

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Dr. Gonzalez-Martinez is a board-certified neurosurgeon subspecialized in epilepsy and functional neurosurgery. He is the Director of Epilepsy and Movement Disorders Surgery, Co-Director of the Epilepsy Center, and Director of the Cortical Systems Laboratory at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center.

Dr. Gonzalez is a world-renowned surgeon who has published more than 200 peer-reviewed articles and book chapters related to epilepsy surgery and methods of brain mapping for patients with medically intractable epilepsy and movement disorders. He has been serving the American Society of Stereotactic and Functional Neurosurgery as a member of the executive committee for the past six years, developing highly relevant projects and topics related to the field of functional neurosurgery and epilepsy.

Dr. Gonzalez is a medical pioneer in novel surgical methods for treating medically refractory seizures, such as stereo-electroencephalography (SEEG), SEEG-guided laser ablative procedures, neuromodulatory interventions, and robotic-guided surgeries. He has introduced innovative surgical approaches for the first time in the United States and other countries. His particular field of interest and academic focus relate to neuro-electrophysiology, intracranial signal processing, and behavioral neuroscience.

Combined, his clinical and basic science efforts have guided his academic and clinical pathway toward safer and more efficient treatments for patients with severe seizures and movement disorders. His work promotes symptom improvement alongside better functional outcomes and overall quality of life.

After completing his medical and scientific training inNeurology and Neuroscience, Dr. Patrick Chauvel became a researcher at INSERM(Institut National de la Santé et de la Recherche Médicale) in Paris (1975).There, he began his pioneering work in experimental and clinical research onthe mechanisms of epilepsy. Under the mentorship of Talairach and Bancaud atHôpital Sainte-Anne/Université René Descartes in Paris, he advancedstereo-electroencephalography (SEEG) as a presurgical method using intracerebralelectrodes for epilepsy surgery (1975–1990). His research has focused on thepathophysiology of the epileptogenic zone, the emergence of seizure semiology,and human cerebral cortex physiology. Notably, he championed the concept of anepileptogenic network, moving beyond the classical "epileptic focus"model, and pioneered new insights into markers of the epileptogenic zone andfocal epilepsy semiology.  

Succeeding Jean Bancaud, Dr. Chauvel served as Director ofthe SEEG Unit at Hôpital Sainte-Anne (1986–1990), then as Professor andChairman of Neurology in Rennes (1990–1997), where he established an innovativeEpilepsy Unit integrating clinical care and research. Later, he becameProfessor and Chairman of Clinical Neurophysiology and Director of the INSERMInstitute of Systems Neuroscience in Marseille (1997–2014). In 2014, he joinedthe Cleveland Clinic’s Epilepsy Center to advance SEEG-based presurgical evaluationin North America, while also serving as Professor of Neurology at the ClevelandClinic Lerner College of Medicine (Case Western Reserve University).Additionally, as an Honorary Professor at the University of Queensland(Brisbane), he guided the development of SEEG-based epilepsy surgery andresearch programs. He later held appointments as Professor of Neurology at theUniversity of Pittsburgh and Neurologist at UPMC.  

Currently, Dr. Chauvel is a researcher at the ClevelandClinic Epilepsy Center, where he is developing novel SEEG-based methods forpresurgical evaluation of drug-resistant epilepsy and researching biomarkers ofthe epileptogenic zone and the neural mechanisms underlying seizuresemiology.  

He is a Member of the Royal Academy of Medicine of Belgiumin recognition of his contributions to the field.  

Dr. Nica is a Neurologist and Neurophysiologist at Rennes University Hospital in France. After completing an internship in neuropediatrics then adult neurology in Bucharest and Rennes, Dr. Nica has been working as a neurologist and neurophysiologist for over 20 years at the University Hospital of Rennes, in the Epileptology Unit of which she became medical director. Her field of expertise is drug-resistant epilepsy surgery, more specifically ictal semiology and intracerebral electrophysiology. She is actively involved in training and teaching in epileptology, particularly in the field of EEG-video and SEEG, in France and abroad. In 2022-2023, she helped train the team and launch the adult SEEG program at the Rothschild Ophthalmological Foundation in Paris. She is a permanent member of the INSERM U1099 Unit of the Rennes Signal and Image Processing Laboratory, CinetyKs team, and as such participates in epileptology research, particularly in the field of EEG and SEEG signal analysis.

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Dr. Kheder is an epileptologist with extensive experience in epilepsy surgery and SEEG. His work focuses on advancing diagnostic and therapeutic strategies for epilepsy. His research interests include seizure semiology, functional neuroanatomy, cognitive neuroscience, and brain mapping and connectivity. Driven by a passion for understanding the complexities of the brain, Dr. Kheder is committed to integrating cutting-edge research into clinical practice to improve patient outcomes.

Dr. Birgit Frauscher is a clinician scientist whose career is dedicated to improve diagnosis and prognosis of people with epilepsy by developing new methods based on advanced
electroencephalography techniques to better localize the epileptic focus in order to improve epilepsy treatment outcomes and ultimately achieve the best possible quality of life. She is
currently holding the position of Director of the Duke Comprehensive Epilepsy Center and holds a secondary appointment with the Department of Biomedical Engineering at the Duke
Pratt School of Engineering.
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Her academic journey started at the Medical University of Innsbruck in Austria, where she accomplished her medical training, residency in neurology, and subspecialty training in
electroencephalography, epilepsy and sleep medicine. Early in her career during Medical School she became fascinated by the technique of electroencephalography and how it allows
to draw important conclusions on brain function. After completion of her clinical training in 2008, she underwent subsequent research training resulting in the successful completion of
her habilitation degree in 2011. To specialize on intracranial EEG and signal analysis, she spent a visiting professorship at the Montreal Neurological Institute and Hospital, McGill
University in Canada between 2013 – 2015. Subsequently, she served at the Montreal Neurological Institute and Hospital as an Attending Epileptologist and later as Group Leader
of Epilepsy and Professor of Neurology.
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Her research interests include i) the development of novel seizure-independent EEG markers for the epileptogenic zone in order to achieve a more accurate diagnosis of epilepsy, ii) the
investigation of the important interactions between sleep and epilepsy, and iii) the use of the unique possibility of invasive intracranial EEG for studying brain physiology during
wakefulness and sleep in order to better delineate normal from abnormal intracranial EEG activity.
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Dr. Frauscher’s publication record holds over 200 peer-reviewed papers dedicated to epilepsy and sleep with a H-index of 69. Her scholarly endeavors have earned her several prestigious
awards, including Clinician-Scientist awards of the FRSQ (2018-2023), the Michael Prize of the International League against Epilepsy (2019) and the Ernst Niedermeyer Prize from the
Austrian Epilepsy Society (2015).

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Christian-G. Bénar is a researcher at the Institute for Systems Neuroscience (INS, Marseille, France). His research focuses on signal processing applied to brain signals (EEG, MEG), in order to characterize the spatio-temporal dynamics of networks in epilepsy and cognition. He graduated from the École supérieure d'électricité (Supélec) in 1994. He spent a year as an engineer at Hôpital Saint-Anne in Toulon (with Franck Vidal), and two years as a programmer at Stellate Systems (Montreal). He did his doctorate under the supervision of Jean Gotman at the Montreal Neurological Institute (INM). He did post-doctoral training in Marseille (Centre FMRI, Jean-Luc Anton and U751, Patrick Chauvel) and at INRIA Sophia Antipolis (Maureen Clerc and Theodore Papadopoulo). He was appointed INSERM researcher in 2006. Since January 2012, he has headed the "Cartographie Dynamique du Cerveau" group at INS (Patrick Chauvel, then Viktor Jirsa). Since September 2014, he has been scientific manager of the MEG platform in Marseille. One of his current project is the setup of a MEG system based on Optically Pumped magnetometers (collaboration with Mag4Health company). He is the author or co-author of more than 160 publications in international journals.

Christophe Grova is Associate Professor affiliated to the Department of Physics of Concordia University and a research member of PERFORM center since July 2014, while remaining adjunct Professor affiliated to Biomedical Engineering Dpt and Neurology and Neurosurgery Dpt at McGill Faculty of Medicine. He is also affiliated to the epilepsy group of the Montreal Neurological Institute (MNI), the McConnell Brain Imaging Center of the MNI and a member of Physnum team at Centre de Recherches Mathématiques. He received his Engineering and Master degrees in biomedical engineering at the University of Technology of Compiègne (France) in 1998, followed by a Ph.D. in SPECT/MRI registration at University of Rennes (France). From 2003 to 2008, his postdoctoral studies at the MNI were focussed on EEG source imaging of epileptic discharges and the correspondence with EEG/fMRI results, while acting as part time research associate for the set-up of the MEG centre of Université de Montreal (2006-2008). Dr Grova has been assistant Professor at McGill from July 2008 to July 2014. Since 2008, he is the director of the “Multimodal Functional Imaging Laboratory” (MultiFunkIm) which is now located on both McGill and Concordia campus. His areas of expertise are EEG/MEG source localization, multimodal data fusion involving EEG/MEG, fMRI and fNIRS, for application in epilepsy and sleep research. C. Grova is the scientific lead of the physiology platform at PERFORM promoting neuroimaging in realistic lifestyle environments using wearable technology (EEG, fNIRS). His team is also handling the development and validation of two software packages: MEM in Brainstorm for EEG/MEG source localization and NIRSTORM for fNIRS data analysis. 

Dr. McKhann is the Director of Epilepsy Surgery, Brain Mapping for Tumors and Epilepsy, and Adult Hydrocephalus at Columbia University Irving Medical Center/New York Presbyterian Hospital. He has over 20 years of experience at CUIMC/NYP, combining clinical skill and compassionate care to maximize patient outcomes. He is a member of both the Columbia P&S Virginia Apgar Academy of Medical Educators and the P&S Academy of Clinical Excellence. His areas of particular technical expertise include awake brain mapping; epilepsy surgery; low grade glioma surgery; minimally invasive, computer guided microneurosurgery; and stereotactic laser ablation for tumors and epilepsy.‍Dr. McKhann also works as a translational neuroscientist, directing the Epilepsy Neurophysiology Laboratory; helping lead the multi-departmental study of Cognitive Neurophysiology together with Catherine Schevon MD, Ph.D. and Charles Schroeder, PhD; and collaborating extensively with the Gabriele Bartoli Brain Tumor Research Laboratory. His basic and clinical research has been funded by the National Institutes of Health, the American Association of Neurological Surgeons, the Klingenstein Foundation, the Charles A. Dana Foundation, the New York Academy of Medicine, Parents Against Childhood Epilepsy, the Irving Center for Clinical Research, CURE, and the Tuberous Sclerosis Alliance.‍Dr. McKhann graduated Phi Beta Kappa and Magna Cum Laude from Duke University, with Research Honors for his investigations into brain tumor immunobiology. He attended Yale School of Medicine where he was AOA, Cum Laude, a Farr Scholar, and one of five recipients of the medical school’s highest thesis award. Dr. McKhann trained in Neurological Surgery at the University of Washington, as well as Atkinson Morley’s Hospital in Wimbledon, England.

Dr. Gonzalez-Martinez is a board-certified neurosurgeon subspecialized in epilepsy and functional neurosurgery. He is the director of the epilepsy and movement disorders surgery, Co-Director of the Epilepsy Center and Director of the Cortical Systems Laboratory at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center.Dr. Gonzalez is a world-renowned surgeon who have published more than 200 peer-reviewed articles and book chapters related to epilepsy surgery and methods of brain mapping for patients with medically intractable epilepsy and movement disorders. He has been serving the American Society of Stereotactic and Functional Neurosurgery in the capacity of member of the executive committee for the last 6 years, developing high relevant projects and topics related to the field of functional neurosurgery and epilepsy.Dr. Gonzalez is a medical pioneer in novel surgical methods for treating medically refractory seizures such as stereo-electroencephalography, SEEG guided laser ablative procedures, neuromodulatory interventions and robotic guided surgeries, bringing for the first time innovative surgical interventions to the United States and other countries. His particular field of interest and academic drive is related to neuro-electrophysiology, intracranial signal processing and behavioral neuroscience studies.Combined, the clinical and basic science efforts have been guiding his academic and clinical pathway for safer and more efficient methods for treating patients with severe seizures and abnormal movement disorders, promoting the improvement of symptoms, in combination with better functional and quality of life outcomes.

Louis Maillard has been leading the Patrick Chauvel Epileptology Unit at the Regional University Hospital of Nancy since 2005. This unit is recognized as a tertiary French and European Reference
Center for rare and drug-refractory epilepsies (ERN EPICARE). Louis is a Professor of Neurology at Lorraine University and a member of the Clinical and Neuroscience Research Team at
Lorraine University, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), UMR 7365. Additionally, he chairs the Scientific Board of the French Clinical Neurophysiology Society and is a member of the ILAE
Task Force on Diagnostic Methods/EEG.
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Louis Maillard completed a clinical fellowship at the Marseille Epileptology Unit from 2003 to 2005 and earned a PhD in neuroscience at the University of Marseille under the supervision of Professors
Patrick and Catherine Chauvel. His research interests and publications focus on drug-resistant epilepsies, with several key objectives:
1. Improving the delineation of the epileptogenic zone using both Stereo-
Electroencephalography (SEEG) and Electrical Source Imaging.

2. Enhancing post-surgical cognitive outcomes, particularly in language and visual recognition,
through electrical cortical stimulation, intra-cerebral evoked potentials, and cortico-cortical
evoked potentials.
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Louis Maillard has served as a tutor and faculty member at numerous international workshops and congresses on SEEG and drug-resistant epilepsies. He chaired the Special Interest Group of the
American Epilepsy Society (AES) dedicated to SEEG in December 2024.

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Dr. Thompson is an Assistant Professor of Neurology at the McGovern School of Medicine and Director of the Stereotactic EEG and SEEG Program. He is an expert in the presurgical and invasive evaluation of intractable focal epilepsies, and has special interest in imaging and signal post-processing technologies for epilepsy surgery. He received his medical degree from the University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada and did his neurology residency at the Memorial University of Newfoundland. He completed his two-year clinical fellowship in Clinical Neurophysiology, EEG and Epilepsy at the Cleveland Clinic Foundation in Ohio.

After completing his medical and scientific training inNeurology and Neuroscience, Dr. Patrick Chauvel became a researcher at INSERM(Institut National de la Santé et de la Recherche Médicale) in Paris (1975).There, he began his pioneering work in experimental and clinical research onthe mechanisms of epilepsy. Under the mentorship of Talairach and Bancaud atHôpital Sainte-Anne/Université René Descartes in Paris, he advancedstereo-electroencephalography (SEEG) as a presurgical method using intracerebralelectrodes for epilepsy surgery (1975–1990). His research has focused on thepathophysiology of the epileptogenic zone, the emergence of seizure semiology,and human cerebral cortex physiology. Notably, he championed the concept of anepileptogenic network, moving beyond the classical "epileptic focus"model, and pioneered new insights into markers of the epileptogenic zone andfocal epilepsy semiology.  

Succeeding Jean Bancaud, Dr. Chauvel served as Director ofthe SEEG Unit at Hôpital Sainte-Anne (1986–1990), then as Professor andChairman of Neurology in Rennes (1990–1997), where he established an innovativeEpilepsy Unit integrating clinical care and research. Later, he becameProfessor and Chairman of Clinical Neurophysiology and Director of the INSERMInstitute of Systems Neuroscience in Marseille (1997–2014). In 2014, he joinedthe Cleveland Clinic’s Epilepsy Center to advance SEEG-based presurgical evaluationin North America, while also serving as Professor of Neurology at the ClevelandClinic Lerner College of Medicine (Case Western Reserve University).Additionally, as an Honorary Professor at the University of Queensland(Brisbane), he guided the development of SEEG-based epilepsy surgery andresearch programs. He later held appointments as Professor of Neurology at theUniversity of Pittsburgh and Neurologist at UPMC.  

Currently, Dr. Chauvel is a researcher at the ClevelandClinic Epilepsy Center, where he is developing novel SEEG-based methods forpresurgical evaluation of drug-resistant epilepsy and researching biomarkers ofthe epileptogenic zone and the neural mechanisms underlying seizuresemiology.  

He is a Member of the Royal Academy of Medicine of Belgiumin recognition of his contributions to the field.  

Dr. Shaker graduated from Tishreen Medical School in Syria and had a research fellowship in Alzheimer’s disease at New York University. He completed his neurology residency at Spectrum Health Hospital and served as a chief resident. After that, he completed a second fellowship in clinical neurophysiology at Cleveland Clinic Foundation. Currently, Dr. Shaker is a clinical assistant professor and Stereotactic electroenecephalogram director at Mercy health Saint Mary’s, Michigan State University.

Aileen McGonigal is Honorary Professor at the Mater Research Institute, University of Queensland and leads the Epilepsy, Rhythms and Behaviour Research Group. She holds a clinical appointment as Director of Epilepsy Unit, at the Mater Hospital, Brisbane.

Aileen’s clinical research aims to improve patient care through better understanding of epilepsy, particularly for patients with drug-resistant epilepsy who may benefit from surgical intervention. She studies seizures recorded using video and brain electrical activity (EEG, SEEG) and investigates how behaviours relate to brain rhythms. Aileen is also interested in neuropsychiatric aspects of epilepsy, including anxiety and depression.

Aileen chairs the Special Interest Group on SEEG of the American Epilepsy Society (2019-22) and is regularly invited to speak at international conferences. She helps define standards of care in epilepsy through her role in the Task Force on Epilepsy Surgery Networks of the Surgical Therapies Commission of the International League Against Epilepsy (ILAE) (2022-2026), and previously, the ILAE Task Force on Depression within the Neuropsychiatry Commission (2014-2018). She is a member of the Scientific Committee of the French Society of Clinical Neurophysiology and Associate Editor of the English-language journal Neurophysiologie Clinique /Clinical Neurophysiology (Elsevier, 2021 Impact Factor 3.7). She is also a member of the Australian, British, and French chapters of the ILAE.

Aileen studied medicine at the University of Glasgow, UK and undertook neurology and EEG training in the UK. She subsequently worked as a consultant neurologist and epileptologist in Marseille, France at the Timone Hospital as well the Centre St Paul (Henri Gastaut Hospital). She belonged to the Institut de Neurosciences de Systèmes, INSERM & Aix-Marseille University, until moving to Mater Research in 2022.

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Prachi Parikh, MD, is an Assistant Professor of Neurology at Duke University Medical Center specializing in epilepsy, clinical neurophysiology, and sleep medicine. She treats complex, refractory epilepsy, focusing on personalized treatment plans, including medications and neuromodulation. Dr. Parikh completed her fellowship and residency at the Cleveland Clinic Foundation.