Hippocampal signature of associative memory measured by chronic ambulatory intracranial EEG

Abstract

Some patients with medically refractory focal epilepsy are chronically implanted with a brain-responsive neurostimulation device (the RNS(R) System), permitting neurophysiological measurements at millisecond resolution. This clinical device can be adapted to measure hippocampal dynamics time-locked to cognitive tasks. We illustrate the technique with a proof of concept in three patients previously implanted with the RNS System as they engage in an associative memory task, measured months apart. Hippocampal activity measured in successful encoding in RNS System patients mirrors that in surgical patients during intracranial electroencephalography (iEEG), suggesting that chronic iEEG allows sensitive measurements of hippocampal physiology over prolonged timescales.