New epilepsy tool could cut misdiagnoses by nearly 70% using routine EEGs

Created by Johns Hopkins researchers, EpiScalp could significantly reduce false positives and spare patients from medication side effects, driving restrictions, and other quality-of-life challenges linked to misdiagnoses

Doctors could soon reduce epilepsy misdiagnoses by up to 70% using a new tool that turns routine electroencephalogram, or EEG, tests that appear normal into highly accurate epilepsy predictors, a Johns Hopkins University study has found.

By uncovering hidden epilepsy signatures in seemingly normal EEGs, the tool could significantly reduce false positives—seen in around 30% of cases globally—and spare patients from medication side effects, driving restrictions, and other quality-of-life challenges linked to misdiagnoses.

“Even when EEGs appear completely normal, our tool provides insights that make them actionable,” said Sridevi V. Sarma, a Johns Hopkins biomedical engineering professor who led the work. “We can get to the right diagnosis three times faster because patients often need multiple EEGs before abnormalities are detected, even if they have epilepsy. Accurate early diagnosis means a quicker path to effective treatment.”

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