The ketogenic diet for super refractory status epilepticus – Why and how?

L-R: Dr Joshua Laing and Ms Neha Kaul

Super refractory status epilepticus carries up to a 40% mortality rate and controlled clinical trials of any treatment are severely limited. Ms Neha Kaul is a dietitian and Dr Joshua Laing is a PhD student in Central Clinical School's Department of Neuroscience explain how the ketogenic diet is emerging as a potential treatment option for SRSE, and their recent article provides practical considerations on using the diet in these cases. 

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Honours student Manisha Dona wins SOBR Excellence award

Honours student Manisha Dona

Congratulations to Manisha Dona, CCS Neuroscience BSc Honours student, who was awarded an Oral Presentation Excellence Award at the Students of Brain Research (SOBR) Network student symposium yesterday for her oral presentation titled “The association of diet, sleep and physical activity on disability outcomes in Multiple Sclerosis”.

Ms Neha Kaul co-supervised Manisha together with Dr Vilija Jokubaitis. Neha said, "Thank you to the Multiple Sclerosis & Neuro Immunology [MSNI] team, in particular Louise Rath and Vilija and her lab group for their support in this project.

"Congratulations Manisha, well deserved and a reflection of your hard work in this particularly difficult year!"

The research was funded in part by the Alfred Research Alliance EMCR Collaborative Seed Grant awarded in late 2019.

Monash/Chinese researchers probe high-fat seizure-reducing diet

PhD student Neha Kaul and colleagues during
their visit to China

by Anne Crawford

A high-fat diet used to treat epilepsy in children has become the focus of a newly established collaboration between Monash University’s Department of Neuroscience and Chinese researchers.

The ketogenic or keto diet, which forces the body to burn fats for energy rather than carbohydrates, has been shown to reduce seizures in two out of three children and leave up to 10 per cent seizure free. These young patients haven’t responded to anti-epileptic medicines previously, researcher Ms Neha Kaul said.