Evaluation of the benefits of aerobic exercise for people with mesial temporal lobe epilepsy program, and relations with structural and biochemical adaptations in the brain.

• Grant number: 14/05435-8
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Doctorate
• Effective date (Start): August 01, 2014
• Effective date (End): July 31, 2018
• Field of knowledge: Health Sciences - Medicine - Pathological Anatomy and Clinical Pathology
• Principal Investigator: Fernando Cendes
• Grantee: Nathália Volpato
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Ciências Médicas (FCM). Universidade Estadual de Campinas (UNICAMP). Campinas , SP, Brazil

Abstract

Mesial temporal lobe epilepsy (MTLE) is of great clinical importance because of the high prevalence, high proportion of patients with refractory seizures, and bechause is association with cognitive dysfunction. People with TLE have lower quality of life (QOL) and higher levels of depression than the general population. It is known that physical activity (PA) is not a precipitat of seizures, and studies in animals and humans show its benefits to the clinical condition and the emotional well- being for this population, however, there is a gap in knowledge of which are the mechanisms induced by PA that leading to improvements of physical and emotional conditions of patients after a practice session of physical exercise (PE) and after a program of PE planned. Studies in animal models have explained some neurological mechanisms that result in adaptations of brain, which are associate with reduction of seizures. The human studies have demonstrated improvement of QOL, of depression, of cardiopulmonary and some have demonstrated decrease in seizure frequency, but none of them explains the neurological mechanisms that led to these improvements. This study aims to examine the biochemical and structural brain changes, through neuroimaging techniques in magnetic resonance resulting of a program of 32 weeks of aerobic PE, and relate them to the QOL index, depression, long-term memory, frequency and intensity of seizures and cardiopulmonary exercise capacity before and after the program of aerobic PE. We believe this research may help in better understanding of the neurobiological mechanisms that PE can provide people with epilepsy.

Scientific publications

(References retrieved automatically from Web of Science and SciELO through information on FAPESP grants and their corresponding numbers as mentioned in the publications by the authors)

VOLPATO, NATHALIA; KOBASHIGAWA, JULIANA; YASUDA, CLARISSA LIN; KISHIMOTO, SIMONI THIEMI; FERNANDES, PAULA TEIXEIRA; CENDES, FERNANDO. Level of physical activity and aerobic capacity associate with quality of life in patients with temporal lobe epilepsy. PLoS One, v. 12, n. 7, JUL 19 2017. (14/05435-8, 13/07559-3)

Academic Publications

(References retrieved automatically from State of São Paulo Research Institutions)

VOLPATO, Nathália. Evaluation of the effects of aerobic physical exercise program in structural brain changes and serum BDNF for people with temporal lobe epilepsy: correlations with cardiopulmonary capacity. 2019. Doctoral Thesis - Universidade Estadual de Campinas (UNICAMP). Faculdade de Ciências Médicas Campinas, SP.