The implantation of an epilepsy treatment device into a 5.5kg baby’s brain marks a first in such a young and low weight patient, paediatric neurosurgeons have said, the procedure hopefully giving the infant a new lease on life.
The 10-month-old baby boy, who suffers from epilepsy, recently underwent the implantation of a vagus nerve stimulator (VNS) at the Galilee Medical Centre in Nahariya, Israel. The vagus nerve is one of the 12 cranial nerves that go from the brain to the rest of the body.
Only patients weighing 20kg or more typically undergo this operation, making it a significant achievement in paediatric neurosurgery; at lower weights, the body area available for the operation is severely limited.
The Jerusalem Post reports that the device is designed to help those with drug-resistant epilepsy when traditional treatments fail to control seizures.
Dr Sergey Abeshaus, Head of Paediatric Neurosurgery at the hospital, said that the best solution was the implantation of an advanced SenTiva VNS pacemaker. The life-changing benefits involve electrical stimulation of the vagus nerve to help reduce the frequency, intensity and duration of seizures by suppressing abnormal electrical activity in the brain.
New lease of life for baby
The pacemaker consists of a battery that is implanted under the left clavicle or in the armpit, as well as an electrode that is implanted on the left vagus nerve. It sends a nerve impulse and stimulates the nerve, helping to suppress the abnormal electrical activity and thus reducing the frequency of seizures, including their length and intensity.
The infant suffered brain damage at the time of his birth because of an oxygenation problem, and has since had repeated convulsions. His weight is very low due to various problems from which he suffers. The Emek Medical Centre in Afula, to which the Nahariya hospital referred the tiny patient, will activate the pacemaker in the coming days.
“Treatment with the pacemaker leads to an improvement in the quality of life, a significant reduction of the seizures or even their cessation, and, in some cases, also prevents life-threatening situations that could be caused if this were not implemented,” Abeshaus said.
He has implanted hundreds of pacemakers in adults and children in northern Israel, but this was the first time he had performed the procedure on a baby so young and so small.
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Vagus nerve stimulation: A potential new treatment for ischaemic stroke
Daily ‘tickling’ of the vagus nerve may improve mood and sleep