Ketogenic diet: electrophysiological effects on the normal human cortex.

Full Abstract

PURPOSE: To explore the cortical electrophysiology of the ketogenic diet (KD) in the normal human. KD is effective against refractory epilepsy, but its precise mechanism is obscure. At the transmitter level, an enhancement of GABA inhibition has often been proposed. METHODS: We studied eight healthy volunteers undergoing a "classic" KD for 2 weeks. We measured several biochemical variables at baseline (T0), after 1 week (T1) and 2 weeks (T2) of KD, then 3 months after the KD conclusion (T3). Ketosis was quantified as 24-h ketonuria. At the same time, we studied the motor cortical excitability by means of transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS). We also quantitatively evaluated the EEG signal in search of frequency shifts over the rolandic areas. RESULTS: Significant (p < 0.05) neurophysiological changes appeared at T2. These consisted of a strengthening of short-latency cortical inhibition (SICI), a TMS index which is thought to reflect GABA-A inhibition in the cortex. Then, there was an enhancement of the beta EEG band over the perirolandic region, similar to that following administration of GABA-A agonists. All changes disappeared at T3. CONCLUSIONS: A standard, short-term KD affected the cortical physiology of the normal human. The main changes were an augmented SICI and an increased perirolandic beta EEG activity, which are compatible with a lower level of neural excitation within the cortex.

Author information

Author/s: Cantello, Roberto (R); Varrasi, Claudia (C); Tarletti, Roberto (R); Cecchin, Michela (M); D'Andrea, Federico (F); Veggiotti, Pierangelo (P); Bellomo, Giorgio (G); Monaco, Francesco (F);

Affiliation: Department of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, Section of Neurology, A. Avagadro University, Novara, Italy. cantello(-atsign-)med.unipmn.it

Journal and publication information

Publication Type: Comparative Study; Journal Article; Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

Journal: Epilepsia (Epilepsia), published in United States. (Language: eng)

Reference: 2007-Sep; vol 48 (issue 9) : pp 1756-63

Dates: Created 2007/09/10; Completed 2007/10/10;

PMID: 17561954, status: MEDLINE (last retrieval date: 2/18/2009, IMS Date: )

Sourced from the National Library of Medicine. Abstract text and other information may be subject to copyright.

External Links for this article
(including full text providers, if available):

Click Electronic Full-text Provider Links to see options for finding the electronic full text links to this article. Note there may be a subscription or fee required for access to the full text. See our FAQ for information on finding FREE full text articles.

This article may also be located in paper journal collections available in many libraries. Use the Journal and Publication Information above to find the full article.