Rare surgery in epilepsy treatment performed at Kerala hospital

Radio frequency ablation, a revolutionary surgery in epilepsy treatment, has been performed at a Kerala hospital, bringing fresh hopes in the life of a boy suffering from uncontrollable laughter episodes and a high seizure burden.

The surgery was conducted on a 12-year-old boy at Amrita Hospital, a private medical facility here recently.

Radiofrequency ablation is a ground-breaking surgery that does not require opening the brain, but still accesses the tumor at the depth of the brain, hospital authorities said.

''This precise targeting allows for the removal of the tumor without damaging any other tissue, meaning that there are no sequelae like weakness, language loss or other side effects,'' the hospital said in a release.

It said the surgery procedure provides hope to parents of children suffering from Hypothalamic Hamartoma.

''Radio frequency ablation is a revolutionary alternative to traditional open brain surgery for epilepsy that is not controlled by medication,'' Dr Siby Gopinath, the Neurologist and Epilepsy specialist at Amrita Advanced Centre for Epilepsy (AACE), said.

The child was diagnosed with hypothalamic hamartoma at the age of one and since then has suffered not only from epilepsy, but also poor school attendance, poor performance, social stigmata, and embarrassment from the unpredictable seizures.

''In this case, the uncontrolled laughter was often misunderstood by peers and family as irrational behaviour, leading to punitive actions and further embarrassment for the child,'' the hospital said, adding that radio frequency ablation has sprouted hope for the young boy and others like him. Gopinath said it is expected that the development will create awareness about this prominent issue and encourage more research and funding for these life-changing surgical techniques. ''With radio frequency ablation, children with hypothalamic hamartoma can finally have a chance to lead a normal life, free from epilepsy and the embarrassment of uncontrolled laughter,'' Gopinath added.

The procedure on this 12-year-old boy was shown live for the participants at a recent four-day workshop on MRI-negative epilepsies, hosted by Amrita Hospital, Kochi.

The programme was attended by around a dozen global experts on epilepsy, including those from institutions such as Cleveland Clinic (USA), McGill University’s Montreal Neurological Institute and Hospital (Montreal, Canada), and Uniklinikum Erlangen (Germany).

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)