Concerned Aunt - Would you consider surgery?

[bettington]

Hi. My niece has had seizures since she was 1 and she is now 12. My sister has taken her to three doctors and they have tried a slew of medications. Her seizures are still frequent and they are now talking about surgery. Would you consider surgery for a 12 year old?

[Bernard]

Hi bettington, welcome to the forum.

Typically, there are a lot of tests that have to be done to determine if someone is a candidate for surgery. They have to be able to pinpoint a focal spot in the brain from which seizures are eminating. The neuros may be offering surgery as an option to explore if she hasn't responded to multiple drugs.

There are a few other options however. Has she tried any seizure control diets? Neuros won't suggest (or typically - even know about) EEG neurofeedback, but I would suggest trying it if you can swing it. You can learn more about the diets, neurofeedback and other options from the chart of alternative treatments.

[POSITIVEPERSON]

Last year I ran out of meds after 39 yrs and tried homeopathy and have been very happy. This year I even had to drop the last 25 mgs of mysoline becuase it was bothering me. Becuase the homeopathy drs said they didn't believe they could get me
off my meds I have combined diet and homeopathy in the hopes of styaing seizure free without meds.

Everyone must do whats best fo rthem and what they are comfortable with.
have ques ? pm

Riva

[brain]

If they are considering surgery, then have they
specified specifically what and why? It has been
documented (you can google it up) that the
younger the child, the higher the success rate is
than it is for an older person / adult as they are
still growing.

In addition - were those 3 Doctors in the SAME
OFFICE or 3 different Doctors in 3 different places.
If 3 different places are all stating the same thing.
Then the chances are - they're all in the same
boat with the same diagnostics.

Remember this, time is critical, and any delay
can actually cause problems. And as the posters
have posted below - there are other options
available.

Contacting the EFA Support Group in your area
will also be of benefit - as they look in all angles
and perspectives - Click on the link below to find
your local EFA Support Group / Chapter:

Epilepsy Foundation Local Chapter Lookup

[Stacy]

I was diagnosed with epilepsy when I was 12 and I've done many of the non invasive treatments available. The diets work, if you're strict. The Neurofeedback works, for a while. Try keeping a journal of what she eats, when she eats, how much sleep she gets, how she feels, what drugs she takes and how much, and every other little thing. This will help her track the seizures and raise the threshold. I also did this and found my seizures were hormonal. I'd have sets of 13 or so, in 24 hours, right around my period, and also if I had eaten a bunch of sugars. Tell your neice to stay out of the sugars and the highly acidic fruits. In the meantime, keep us posted and good luck.

[Nancy]

I'm so very much older than the child you're talking about ...........
But I've had "brain surgery" twice and I'm doing just fine. I would not hesitate to say someone in my family should have it.

My epilepsy is caused by a brain tumor - grade 2 oligodendroglioma - that was removed by a great university hospital Feb., 2006 and I had surgery again in May of this year to see if we could stop my seizures. So far I'm doing great.

If the surgery is performed by great surgeons at a UNIVERSITY HOSPITAL it will be the best hope there is. The hospital you chose is the most important thing.

[bettington]

Thank you very much for your responses. I will follow all of the links that you gave. I was surprised to read about the surgery being more successful for a younger patient. I will try to find the evidence you suggest is out there. If this is true, why does it seem that more people wait until they are older?