A better understanding of the effects of ongoing TLE on neural functioning might influence the timing of surgical intervention. Functional connectivity and neural network analysis have shown to be a promising tool in studying epilepsy and brain tumor patients. Changes in network characteristics and functional connectivity have been associated with both epilepsy and brain lesions [10], [15], [19], [21]. We therefore consider that changes in functional connectivity and network configuration may be a marker of possible progression of TLE. We hypothesize that functional interactions in the brain are correlated to temporal lobe epilepsy duration. We expect to demonstrate a correlation between TLE duration and changes in network characteristics of the temporal lobe. We expect less functional connectivity and a more random configuration of the temporal neural networks as TLE duration increases.
