FDA Approves ‘Brain Pacemaker’ to Suppress Epileptic Seizures
From Times staff and wire reports
The Food and Drug Administration on Wednesday approved a new “pacemaker for the brain” to suppress epileptic seizures. The device is designed to control so-called partial onset seizures, which affect about 53% of the estimated 2.5 million epileptics in the United States.
The pacemaker, manufactured by Cyberonics Inc. of Webster, Texas, is implanted under the skin of the chest in a one- to two-hour surgical procedure, with a wire lead connecting it to the vagus nerve in the neck. Clinical trials have shown that the device can suppress seizures in many patients who do not receive relief from medication.
