A 13-Year-Old Boy Has Become The First Patient Ever To Receive A Brain Implant For Epilepsy, Reducing His Daytime Seizures By 80%

A 13-year-old boy from the U.K. has become the first patient in the world to be fitted with a new brain stimulation device to control seizures. The device was surgically implanted in his skull and has already reduced his daytime seizures by 80 percent.

Oran Knowlson had the procedure done back in October 2023 as part of a trial at Great Ormond Street Hospital in London when he was 12 years old. Before the device was fitted, he would have two dozen to hundreds of seizures per day.

At the age of three, Oran developed Lennox-Gastaut syndrome, a form of epilepsy that is resistant to treatment. According to his mother, Justine, his epilepsy has “robbed him of his childhood.” She also explained the different types of seizures her son would have.

Oran would frequently fall to the ground, shake violently, and lose consciousness. At times, he would even stop breathing and require emergency medication to resuscitate him. In addition to Lennox-Gastaut syndrome, Oran has diagnoses of autism and ADHD.

Since this form of epilepsy does not respond to traditional drug treatments, scientists have been exploring alternative approaches. So far, one of the most promising options is neurostimulation, which is how the CADET Project came to be.

Oran is part of the CADET Project, a series of trials assessing the effectiveness and safety of deep brain stimulation for severe epilepsy.

The project was established as a collaborative effort between Great Ormond Street Hospital, University College London, University of Oxford, and King’s College Hospital. The brain stimulation device, called the Picostin, was made by U.K. company Amber Therapeutics.

The device works by emitting a constant electrical current that blocks or disrupts the abnormal bursts of electrical activity in the brain that characterize epileptic seizures. Oran’s surgery took eight hours to complete. The team, led by consultant pediatric neurosurgeon Martin Tisdall, inserted two electrodes into the thalamus in his brain.

The neurostimulator itself was placed in a gap in Oran’s skull, where the bone had been removed. It can be recharged through the skin with a wireless headset or handheld charger.

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