Fifteen years ago, epilepsy surgery was a highly specialized field that was still quite new in Viet Nam. Today, nearly 200 children with drug-resistant epilepsy have undergone surgery at Vietnam National Children’s Hospital, achieving outcomes comparable to those of leading epilepsy surgery centers around the world.
The ceremony marking 15 years of epilepsy surgery and 10 years of collaboration between Vietnam National Children’s Hospital and Children’s of Alabama took place on the morning of September 23, 2026. The event was an occasion to look back on a sustained journey of professional development, in which the hospital has implemented and mastered numerous advanced techniques in pediatric epilepsy surgery, while also commemorating a decade of cooperation, training, and technology transfer between the two hospitals.
15 years of Mastering Advanced Techniques at Vietnam National Children’s Hospital
Starting from its first surgical cases, Vietnam National Children’s Hospital gradually expanded its range of treatment methods — from frontal and occipital lobe resections and corpus callosotomy to functional hemispherectomy and surgery for drug-resistant epilepsy cases. Epilepsy surgery has since become a routine specialized activity at the hospital.
Alongside surgical development, the hospital’s capacity for diagnosis, pre-surgical evaluation, and identification of epileptogenic zones has also steadily improved. Numerous advanced techniques have been put into practice, including intraoperative electrocorticography, subdural EEG monitoring, deep electrode placement, and cortical functional mapping. To date, 60 pediatric patients have undergone intraoperative electrocorticography, and 7 cases have been monitored with subdural EEG and deep brain electrode placement.
Honoring 10 Years of Partnership with Children’s of Alabama, USA
The 2016 marked an important milestone when Vietnam National Children’s Hospital and Children’s of Alabama began their collaborative program in this field. Over the past decade, the two institutions have sustained a range of meaningful activities, including training in both Viet Nam and the United States, consultations on complex cases, in-person and online classes, equipment support, and technology transfer.
These regular, direct exchange activities have enabled the medical staff at Vietnam National Children’s Hospital to access, apply, and progressively master new techniques, helping to strengthen the epilepsy surgery program through a multidisciplinary approach.
Honoring Those Who Paved the Way
Today’s achievements are the result of the combined efforts of many generations. On this occasion, Vietnam National Children’s Hospital expresses its gratitude to the generations of leaders, experts, physicians, nurses, technicians, and domestic and international colleagues who have contributed to laying the foundation, passing on experience, and building the pediatric epilepsy surgery program over the past 15 years.
Immediately following the ceremony, a “Workshop on Updates in the Diagnosis and Treatment of Epilepsy” was held with the participation of experts from Viet Nam and the United States. Its content will be covered by Vietnam National Children’s Hospital in an upcoming newsletter.
