Edinburgh

Advertisment

A Scottish teenager suffering from debilitating epilepsy for the majority of his life received the perfect Christmas gift when he underwent a groundbreaking surgery to remove a piece of his brain to stop the condition from reoccurring. Doctors are now hopeful that Angus Bain, 17, will no longer have seizures in his life. 

For the past 13 years, Bain has endured seizure attacks at least once a week. According to Nicki Bain, his mother, the teenager's condition had consumed the lives of the entire family since he was five. His seizures were so severe that it left him wiped for days afterwards. 

“Our lives have been consumed with Angus’s epilepsy since he was 5. He has been on lots of very heavy medication, had wires in his head, brain stimulation, so many tests and scans,” Bain was quoted as saying by SWNS. 

Advertisment

That changed in October when doctors at the Edinburgh Children’s Hospital decided to employ an innovative laser technology known as MRI-guided Laser Interstitial Thermal Therapy (LITT). The procedure is minimally invasive and the surgery takes just under 120 minutes with a relatively short recovery time. 

In the operation, the laser is directed to a particular area of the brain, using a thin fibre that is guided to the tumor tissue. The laser transmits energy and as a result, heats up the tissue surrounding the tip of the laser fibre. 

Watch | Less wattage, more brain power!

Advertisment

×

Christmas gift

Since undergoing the surgery, it has been over 10 weeks and Bain is yet to have an episode of epilepsy - the perfect Christmas gift for him. 

"I've never had such a long period not having a seizure, it's an amazing relief. I'm so happy," Bain was quoted as saying by BBC Scotland News. 

"Being able to have this surgery is amazing. I think it could change my life forever by making me able to do the things I haven't been able to do," he added.

Also read | A Mozart song found to have calming effect on people with epilepsy

Despite the procedure, it would take a year before Bain can come off the strong medication he is on currently. Doctors say the strong medications are necessary to ensure that his brain recovers from the surgery. 

“The laser surgery is a fantastic development for specific patients and will give some with epilepsy a real chance to live a normal life. The surgery has been life-changing not just for Angus, but for the entire family," said  Dr Jothy Kandasamy, consultant neurosurgeon at the Royal Hospital for Children and Young People. 

Bain is only the second young person in Scotland to have received the treatment. Doctors remain hopeful that his success would help make further inroads into the development of the operation procedure. 

(With inputs from agencies)