New ‘outstanding’ research into the effects of epilepsy on the human brain could give way to significant improvements in future surgery.

The news comes after researchers at the University of Exeter managed to develop a complex computer model capable of accurately determining where in the brain epileptic seizures begin.

Researchers claim that the new technology can also distinguish between the original source of a seizure and the subsequent regions of the brain which react as a result of a seizure trigger.

Senior author of journal Scientific Reports, where the University of Exeter’s findings were recently published, said: “The potential is truly outstanding. It gives surgeons valuable information on how different brain regions contribute to seizures, enabling them to predict the outcome of different surgical strategies and so better plan surgery.

“This research has the potential to dramatically improve surgical success rates for those patients who need it, and so also dramatically improve their quality of life”.

First Author, Dr Marc Goodfellow, added: “The potential for future treatment is clear – we are looking at a more accurate way of identifying exactly where to operate to give the best results for an individual, and so improve the lives of so many people who would otherwise have to live with the constant threat of seizures.”