Intravenous Immunoglobulin (IVIG) for Autoimmune Epilepsy Seizure Reduction

This study focuses on understanding if Intravenous Immunoglobulin (IVIG), a treatment given through the veins, can significantly lower the number of epileptic seizures in individuals with autoimmune epilepsy, a condition where the body's immune system mistakenly attacks healthy cells in the brain. The study is open to potential participants who will be screened at an outpatient neurology clinic. Those who qualify and consent will partake in this trial. The importance of this study lies in its potential to provide a new treatment option for autoimmune epilepsy, which could improve patients' quality of life and address current challenges in managing this condition. Participants are randomly assigned to receive either IVIG or a placebo treatment for a duration of 5 weeks. After this period, they will return to the Mayo Clinic for an evaluation. Those who initially received the placebo will then be given IVIG for the next 5 weeks, followed by another evaluation at the clinic. All participants will receive monthly phone calls for a year after completing the IVIG treatment. The study measures its results by tracking the number of participants who experience a 50% or greater reduction in seizure frequency from the start of the trial to the end of the 5-week treatment period. This helps evaluate the effectiveness of IVIG in managing autoimmune epilepsy.