England: Schoolboy receives world’s first skull-fitted epilepsy device

A schoolboy from southwest England has achieved a medical breakthrough by becoming the world’s first person with severe epilepsy to undergo a trial of a new device implanted in his skull to manage seizures. According to reports on Monday, the neurostimulator, which sends electrical signals deep into his brain, has significantly reduced Oran Knowlson’s daytime seizures by 80 percent.

Oran, who is now 13 years old, suffers from Lennox-Gastaut syndrome, a type of epilepsy that is resistant to conventional treatments and which he developed at the age of three. Prior to the surgery in October 2023, Oran experienced multiple seizures daily, ranging from two dozen to hundreds, as reported by the BBC.

The groundbreaking eight-hour surgery took place as part of a trial conducted at Great Ormond Street Hospital in collaboration with University College London, King’s College Hospital, and the University of Oxford.

Epilepsy seizures are triggered by abnormal bursts of electrical activity in the brain. The implanted device emits a continuous pulse of current designed to block or disrupt these abnormal signals.

Oran’s mother, Justine, told the BBC that his overall quality of life has greatly improved since the surgery. “We’ve seen a big improvement, seizures have reduced and are less severe. He’s a lot more chatty, he’s more engaged. He’s turned 13 and I definitely now have a teenager – he’s happy to tell me no. But that adds to his quality of life when he can express himself better,” she said.

Consultant paediatric neurosurgeon Martin Tisdall expressed delight at the positive outcome, stating, “We are delighted that Oran and his family have seen such a huge benefit from the treatment and that it has dramatically improved his seizures and quality of life.”

Oran is participating in the CADET (Children’s Adaptive Deep brain stimulation for epilepsy trial) project, which aims to assess the safety and effectiveness of deep brain stimulation for severe epilepsy. The implanted Picostim neurotransmitter, developed by UK company Amber Therapeutics, sits beneath the skull and delivers electrical signals deep into the brain to reduce daytime seizures.

The CADET pilot will now expand to include three additional patients with Lennox-Gastaut syndrome, with plans to recruit a total of 22 patients for a comprehensive trial.

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