I became interested in the pathophysiology of SUDEP after taking a recreational freediving course that taught me how to stay submerged for several minutes at a time, on a single breath of air. Surprisingly , it also taught me about a multi-pronged neurological response to apnea I had never heard about: the mammalian diving response (MDR) as was not on the curriculum at any of the academic programs that had graduated me.
Since then, the more I learn about the MDR, the more I believe it in its potential pathological implications during clinical instances of prolonged involuntary apnea, such as those sometimes driven by epileptic seizures .
A component of my work focuses on the role that white blood cell counts measured immediately after seizures may play in the stratification of SUDEP risk.
This website summarizes aspects of my research which suggest that: 1) most cases of SUDEP are instigated by augmented forms of the MDR; 2) the white blood cell count after seizures can help identify persons at risk of SUDEP; 3) sudden unexpected atraumatic arterial dissection-related death after seizure (SUADAS) should be added to the spectrum of mechanisms by which epileptic seizures cause sudden death; 4) and that seizure-induced sudden deaths are similarly frequent among persons with and without epilepsy.
contact: Jose.vega@teleneurologia.com