Dubai doctors treat teen’s epileptic seizures with smart implant

Dubai - The high-tech device was among the most advanced in the world.

Fourteen-year-old Emirati girl H.A. is now ready to live a better life beyond her epileptic seizures, thanks to a high-tech device that Dubai doctors had implanted underneath her skin.

The teen had been suffering from seizures that were drug-resistant. Doctors at Rashid Hospital thoroughly studied her condition and found that she was the right candidate for the ‘most advanced’ type of the smart implant that was dubbed “the pacemaker for the brain”.

The device — roughly the size of a one-dirham coin — was placed under the skin on her chest, and H.A. is now preparing herself for the programming. It is expected to make her seizures less severe and less frequent in nature.

Explaining how the device works, Dr Abdulla Qassim, consultant and head of neurosurgery at Rashid Hospital, said: “We implanted the Vagal Nerve Stimulator ( VNS) device under the skin in the chest. VNS is sometimes referred to as a ‘pacemaker for the brain’ as it sends regular and mild impulses of electrical energy to the brain via the vagus nerve, which helps prevent epileptic seizures.”

He added: “The mechanism is so sophisticated that the patient does not realise there is an implant in the body.”

About a third of people with epilepsy do not fully respond to anti-seizure drugs, said another specialist at the hospital, Dr Muhammad Al Kaylani.

“This method of treatment is primarily used to treat focal or partial seizures that do not respond to seizure medications and is used for patients who are not eligible for certain types of epilepsy surgeries,” said Dr Al Kaylani, consultant neurologist and epileptologist at Rashid Hospital.

VNS, he explained, can be programmed for each patient differently. “It is the most advanced type of smart and self-intelligent implant. We have used the newest generation of VNS currently available in the world, making Rashid Hospital the first hospital outside Europe and North America to use this technology.”

The implant helps reduce the frequency of seizures and can shorten the recovery time after a seizure, he added. “Moreover, it also reduces the emergency room visits that such patients need to undergo when they experience frequent or severe seizures. Through this treatment we are able to significantly improve the patient’s level of alertness, overall mood and quality of life.”

reporters@khaleejtimes.com

• Dubai