Seizure-free woman credits medical device from Eden Prairie company
Brain implant saves woman from seizures
A Georgia woman has been seizure-free for a year, and she now credits a brain implant device made by an Eden Prairie company. FOX 9’s Mike Manzoni has the story.
EDEN PRAIRIE, Minn. (FOX 9) - A Georgia woman has been seizure-free for a year after surgeons at Mayo Clinic used a brain implant device made by an Eden Prairie company.
Young woman marks one year without seizures, credits brain implant technology
The backstory:
In 2020, Fuller, then 13 years old, started having as many as 10 seizures a night. She was misdiagnosed and treated with nearly a dozen medications, but they did not alleviate her symptoms.
She eventually learned about a first-of-its-kind brain implant device, which doctors at Mayo Clinic’s Jacksonville, Florida, hospital used when she underwent surgery in June 2024. Now, 18 years old, she has not suffered a single seizure.
How it works:
The wire-like device is implanted into the brain during surgery. In many cases, multiple devices are implanted in different areas.
The device locates the area or areas causing the seizures and allows doctors to use radio frequencies to burn – or ablate – those sections, hopefully stopping the convulsions.
In Fuller’s case, surgeons located two areas of her brain responsible for her epileptic episodes.
Where they’re using it:
NeuroOne said the device, which retails for about $100,000, is in several hospitals nationwide, and has been used in about two dozen surgeries over the last year. The company is not charging hospitals for the device, which it has sent to them as part of a trial arrangement.
What they're saying:
"Since then, I’ve had no seizures," said Fuller. "They’re so thrilled to see I’m not having any seizures from when I came in a year ago having 10-plus a night."
The technology is unlike anything else on the market, the company said.
"The ability to monitor and control the temperature," explained Mark Christianson, NeuroOne’s co-founder. "In the systems that they’re doing off-label, that element is not available."
What's next:
Fuller is now in nursing school, something she said would not have been possible if she were still having daily seizures. NeuroOne said it hopes to develop the technology to treat other conditions.