Skyline Medical Center Performs First Procedure To Help Patients Control Seizures

NASHVILLE, TN.  July 16, 2003 -  A new treatment for people with seizure disorders is now available at Skyline Medical Center.  Jason Hubbard, M.D., a neurosurgeon, implanted the hospital’s first Vagus Nerve Stimulation (VNS™) with the Cyberonics NeuroCybernetic Prosthesis (NCP®) System in a patient last week.

VNS is the first new approach to the treatment of epilepsy in over 100 years. After 15 years of research and clinical studies, VNS Therapy was approved on July 16, 1997 as an add-on therapy in reducing the frequency of seizures in adults and adolescents over 12 years of age with partial onset seizures which are not responsive to antiepileptic medications.

“VNS Therapy is the first antiepileptic therapy that uses an implantable medical device, the VNS Therapy System,” Dr. Hubbard explained.  “The system consists primarily of a pacemaker-like generator and a nerve stimulation lead. Pacemakers have been effectively used to control heart conditions since 1958. Similar to pacemaker generators currently in use, the pulse Generator is computer controlled and battery powered. The battery may last up to 12 years depending on the stimulation parameters used by the physician.”

VNS Therapy consists of electrical signals that are applied to the vagus nerve in the neck for transmission to the brain. Vagus means wanderer in Latin. The vagus nerve is appropriately named considering that it averages 22 inches in length in adults and wanders throughout the upper body. The vagus nerve is one of the primary communication lines from the major organs of the body to the brain. The vagus nerve has proven to be a good way to communicate with the brain.

Unlike other types of epilepsy surgery, surgical implantation of the VNS Therapy System does not involve the brain. The VNS pulse generator and lead are implanted in the chest and neck in a procedure which involves:
· 45 minutes to 2 hours of surgery time;
· a small incision on the side of the neck for the lead;
· a small chest incision for the generator; and
· a 6-hour to overnight hospital stay.

Some patients and physicians have reported benefits other than simple changes in seizure frequency. Studies are underway to evaluate the significance of these and other reported benefits. For some patients, VNS has resulted in one or more of the following benefits:
· less severe or shorter seizures
· improved postictal period
· better mood
· improved alertness
· memory and cognition
· fewer emergency room visits

Some physicians have successfully reduced the number and/or dosage levels of the antiepileptic drugs taken by some patients who have responded to VNS.

The VNS Therapy System delivers VNS Therapy in two ways:  automatically and on-demand.  First, the physician will program a 24-hours a day, 7-day a week "dose" of periodic stimulation.  One such dose frequently used by physicians is 30 seconds of stimulation followed by a 5-minute period of no stimulation.  The stimulation is automatically delivered and you don't have to "take" anything until your physician reprograms the generator or the battery runs out.

The second way it delivers is when the patient, a family member or a caregiver senses a seizure coming on and passes the NCP magnet over the area in the chest where the generator is implanted to activate an extra, on-demand stimulation.  The CyberPager and CyberWatch magnets are easily carried on the body for fast and effortless accessibility.

Located at 3441 Dickerson Pike on the highest point in Davidson County, Skyline Medical Center is an ultra-modern facility, featuring all private patient rooms and valet parking.  The facility opened in the fall of 2000 as a replacement hospital for Nashville Memorial Hospital.  Offering advanced medical capabilities, Skyline Medical Center is particularly known for its neurosurgery, neurology, oncology, orthopedics, and emergency services.  Its 59-acre campus is also home to the 200,000 square-foot Skyline Medical Plaza, which provides convenient access to physician offices and a pharmacy.

Skyline Medical Center is part of the TriStar Health System family of hospitals.  For more information, call TriStar MedLine at 342-1919 or 1-800-242-5662.

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