Chronic brain disease that causes seizures currently affects around 600,000 people living in the UK
The NHS has announced that it will introduce a new laser light treatment in June this year to help prevent seizures in people with epilepsy.
A new fiber optic laser therapy called laser interstitial thermal therapy (LITT) targets the parts of the brain that cause seizures without the need for invasive surgery.
Epilepsy, which affects around 600,000 people in the UK, is a chronic brain disease that causes seizures that cause involuntary movements.
Approximately one in three people living with the condition have seizures that cannot be controlled with anti-seizure drugs and may require invasive brain surgery to remove the part of the brain that causes epilepsy. .
The treatment, offered at King’s College Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust and Walton Center in Liverpool, involves making a small hole and inserting a 1.5mm wide probe with a fiber optic laser at the tip into the skull to reach the epilepsy. and destroy it. -Causes brain tissue.
The research team will use an MRI scanner to travel inside the brain, avoiding blood vessels and other important structures while monitoring the surrounding temperature to ensure healthy brain tissue is not overheating.
Patients can go home within 24 to 48 hours after LITT and return to work or other activities within a week, with minimal risk of infection or other side effects.
The NHS says an estimated 50 people in the UK whose epilepsy cannot be controlled with standard anti-seizure drugs are eligible for LITT each year.
James Palmer, Medical Director, Specialist Services and Consultant Neurosurgeon at NHS England, said LITT would “allow clinicians to better target the parts of the brain that cause epilepsy, reducing the risk of “This will help reduce both internal and external recovery times for patients.” ‘in hospitals’ and ‘will give the NHS new hope for people for whom standard medicines have no effect on controlling seizures’.
