Brain Surgery is an Option for Epilepsy Treatment Rebecca Farnsworth had her first epileptic seizure 30 years ago. Medicine worked for a while, but came with its risks. Epileptologist chats with ABC4's Nadia Crow about brain surgery as an... By: IntermtnMedCtr … Continue reading →

YEHUD, Israel & NEW HOPE, Minn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--BioControl Medical has announced that it received CE marking in Europe for use of its FitNeS vagus nerve stimulation system (together with its spin-off CerebralRx) as an adjunct therapy for treatment resistant depression (TRD). TRD, which is depression that has not responded to four or more antidepressant treatments, is a serious condition affecting 4-10 percent of the worldwide population.1 This is the second indication for FitNeS; the first was for the treatment of drug-resistant epilepsy. CerebralRxs FitNeS consists of an implanted stimulator and stimulation lead, which work together to deliver electrical signals to the left vagus nerve. The FitNeS system addresses TRD by applying low amplitude stimulation signals to the vagus nerve in a preferentially directional way toward the brain. The system effectively activates nerve fibers toward the brain while minimizing the activation of non-related nerve fibers and surrounding tissues. This selective approach has the potential to increase stimulation effectiveness while minimizing risk of side effects. Depression can be a debilitating disease, particularly when it does not appear to be treatable with traditional medications, said Ehud Cohen, Ph.D., chief executive officer of BioControl Medical. The fact that this technology is now available to these … Continue reading →

From an editorial Sunday in the (Raleigh) News & Observer: In the United States, it is estimated that one in every 68 children is autistic. In North Carolina, its one in 58. Those are alarming numbers, but so far not alarming enough to move the state Senate to help families coping with the most severe forms of autism. Last session, the N.C. House, by a vote of 105-7, passed House Bill 498, a measure requiring insurers to provide broader coverage for the treatment of autism spectrum disorders. But the bill stalled in the Senate where members were wary of the potential cost. Having passed one chamber, the bill is eligible to come up during the current short session. That opportunity was almost foreclosed by a Senate proposal for a one-year moratorium on all new health insurance mandates. The proposed moratorium is part of a Republican push for a study that will show how much the Affordable Care Act is costing North Carolina. In an impressive show of resolve and compassion, a group of GOP House members stood up for the autism bill last week when they did not attend a meeting of the Joint Study Committee on the Affordable Care … Continue reading →

Honey, I think your dad had a stroke. I fear hearing these words over the phone from my mom. Stroke continues to be the fourth leading cause of death in the United States and the leading cause of disability in Montana. My dad has several medical conditions which put him at a higher risk for stroke: high blood pressure, diabetes, atrial fibrillation (a heart rhythm disorder), he is male, and he is over 55 years old. I have already talked with my parents about stroke and the steps to take if one of them develops symptoms such as an uneven smile, weakness and/or numbness in one arm or leg, slurred speech, or inability to speak. They know to call 9-1-1 and ask to be taken to the nearest Primary Stroke Center-certified hospital, because each minute a stroke is left untreated the risk of permanent brain damage, disability, and death is increased. The care and treatment a stroke patient receives in the first hours after stroke onset can greatly influence the patients recovery. Primary Stroke Center-certified hospitals have the necessary people and processes in place to provide the best possible stroke care. The only FDA-approved drug treatment for acute ischemic stroke … Continue reading →

PUBLIC RELEASE DATE: 20-May-2014 Contact: Nathaniel Dunford ndunford@thoracic.org American Thoracic Society ATS 2014, SAN DIEGO The link between stroke and obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) has been established by several clinical studies in recent years, with the most significant risks attributed to male patients. Now, a new study by researchers from Boston says the link between OSA and stroke may be just as strong among women. According to the study, because men tend to develop OSA earlier than women, studies that have evaluated the link between OSA and stroke among age-matched groups of men and women may have underestimated associations. "Some researchers and clinicians have theorized that because men may have OSA for longer periods of their lives compared to women, studies have been looking at populations with very different exposure times, and that therefore, the gender differences that have been apparent in past studies really just reflect inadequate follow-up time," said study lead author Suzie Bertisch, M.D., MPH. "For instance, if you look at two groups of populations, one male and one female, within a specific age range, there's a good chance that the male population has been experiencing OSA symptoms for longer than the female population of the same … Continue reading →

Johns Hopkins researchers say they have developed a technique that can predict with 95 percent accuracy which stroke victims will benefit from intravenous, clot-busting drugs and which will suffer dangerous and potentially lethal bleeding in the brain. Reporting online May 15th 2014 in the journal Stroke, the Johns Hopkins team says these predictions were made possible by applying a new method they developed that uses standard magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans to measures damage to the blood-brain barrier that protects the brain from drug exposure. A release from the university explains that if further tests confirm the method's accuracy, it could form the basis of expanded and more precise use of intravenous tPA, a drug that is currently limited to patients who are within 4.5 hours of a stroke onset, in order to have the best chance of dissolving the blood clot causing the stroke without risking additional damage. If doctors had a safe, reliable tool to determine which patients could still be safely treated outside that window, more patients could be helped, the researchers say. The release quotes says study leader Richard Leigh, M.D., an assistant professor of neurology and radiology at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, … Continue reading →

HOW DOCTORS ARE USING THESE POWERFUL CELLS TO STEM HAIR LOSS. FROM THIS FREEZER COME AS SMALL BOX, WITH A BIG PROMISE. GETTING TO THE ROOT OF HAIR LOSS. MAKES SO UPSET. THAT I DON'T LIKE THAT. IT'S SOMETHING THAT I HAVE TOO LEARN HOW TO DEAL WITH THAT. FEMALE PATTERN LIVES IN THE GENES. IT BECAME WORSE AFTER THE BIRTH OF HER FIRST CHILD. TWO PHOTOS. SHE HAS COME TO CARE LOSS SPECIALIST FOR A UNIQUE TREATMENT AND INJECTION COME POE OF HER OWN PLATE LET RICH PLASMA WORKED WITH FREEZE-DRIED STEM CELLS. IT IS HUMAN TISSUE, SO THERE'S NO RISK OR SIDE EFFECTS. APPROVE THE FUNCTIONS OF THE HAIR FOLLICLES THAT CREATE THIN HIS PICTURE HAIR. THE KEY IS TO ACT BEFORE THE FOLLICLES HAVE DIED. A LOT LESS EXPENSIVE THAN A HAIR TRANSPLANT, AND IT CAN WORK AS A STOP. IN SOME AREAS THAT MAY BENEFIT FROM NONINVASIVE TREATMENT BEFORE NEEDING THE HAIR TRANSPLANT. TYPICALLY PATIENTS SEE CHANGES IN THEIR HAIR QUALITY WITHIN FOUR TO EIGHT WEEKS AND MAY HAVE CONTINUES IMPROVE FOR UP TO 18 MONTHS. . IT IS GOING TO MAKE ME HAPPY. THAT'S WHAT I HOPE, THEY FEEL HAPPY WHEN I LOOK IN THE … Continue reading →