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Interest in neurostimulation to treat epilepsy has rekindled over the past decade, with vagus nerve stimulation (VNS) now an accepted part of the algorithm for care of patients with medically refractory epilepsy.1 More than 15 000 VNS devices have been surgically implanted in patients around the world. The reported improvements in seizure control are modest and the mechanism by which VNS may exert its effects is unclear, however, the benefits are presumed to be directly related somehow to the electrical stimulation applied to the nerve. A small number of relevant experimental studies have shown antiepileptic effects related to VNS, although the effects may be non-specific, for example, in rats heating of the tail is equally effective as stimulation of the vagus nerve in …