Monday, April 7, 2008

Phases of pre surgery testing

To get to the point of having brain surgery to remove a bad spot that causes epilepsy a person goes through several phases of testing. Phase 1 is the hospital stay with electrodes epoxied to the surface of the scalp, and seizures encouraged so the doctors can trace where they come from.

Phase 2 is a similar procedure, but with wires inserted through the head into the brain. One method is called depth electrodes, with long probes going through holes drilled in the cranium. The other uses a grid which is more invasive to get put in place, and involves recovery in the ICU and a whopper of a headache.

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