Individual progression of S100 calcium binding protein beta as a surrogate for epilepsy risk (PROG-S100B): rationale and design of a meta-analysis project

Background: Epilepsy research centres in Europe and Asia have reported the correlation between S100 Calcium Binding Protein beta (S100B) and epilepsy. However, whether S100B has clinical diagnostic value has been debated. This epilepsy study developed a long-term research plan to resolve this controversy, divided into three simple phases. Methods: The first phase is mainly observational studies, focusing on resolving the debate on the correlation between S100B levels in serum or cerebrospinal fluid and epilepsy. The second phase uses observational and randomized controlled research data, focusing on solving the baseline standard of S100B level and epilepsy population with different characteristics and providing a research basis for the predictive value of S100B level on epilepsy. The third phase is mainly based on randomized controlled studies, focusing on the accuracy of S100B as a biomarker for diagnosing epilepsy. Discussion: Due to the large number of high-risk groups for epilepsy, it is difficult to identify whether patients with involuntary jerks of limbs have epilepsy. Although electroencephalogram (EEG) can capture pathological brain waves, it inconveniences the general population. Even when a patient is diagnosed with epilepsy and discharged from the hospital, predicting the time interval for the subsequent seizure is difficult. Therefore, a more convenient and clinically valuable tool than the EEG is necessary. The number of studies on epilepsy biomarkers has gradually increased in recent years, which provides a sufficient research basis for this study. Registration: https://www.crd.york.ac.uk/PROSPERO/, CRD-ID: CRD42023425431.