Four million people will suffer a seizure at some point in their life. Half of those people will not be able to control their Epilepsy with medicine alone.
For years brain surgery was only an option for adults. It was considered too risky for children, but doctors here in Central Texas are changing that.
Two months ago a team at Dell Children’s Medical Center performed the first of its kind brain surgery on a child and many think it’s the first of many life changing experiences that will take place here.
At 16 months old Aahlaya can melt your heart.
“She’s just fun to be around,” said her mom, Caresa. “She makes you laugh even when you’re sad.”
But all the joy of raising her first child has also been filled with worry.
“We found out she officially had a disability when she was about three months old.”
“She unfortunately suffered a stroke around the time of her birth which caused a lot of damage in one half of her brain,” said neurosurgeon Mark Lee, M.D.
After a series of tests doctors determined Aahlaya was suffering from seizures. Her seizures are often undetectable to the untrained eye, but she suffered as many as a hundred a day. Medicines didn’t work.
Just last year Dell Children’s Medical Center
Dr. Lee is one of the top pediatric neurosurgeons in the country and now works right here in Austin.
“We feel that a surgical procedure, an operation is her best chance to stop the seizures,” said Dr. Lee.
Traditionally patients like Aahlaya would have to wait until they were an adult. If they survived that long, doctors would then remove the damaged half of her brain. But that surgery called a hemispherectomy can cause complications later in life.
Dr. Lee and his team say doing surgery on children can prevent years of damage and give Aahlaya a chance at a normal life. So instead they plan to disconnect the right half of Aahlaya’s brain from the left half essentially cutting off the seizure pathway.
It’s still a risky surgery but neither are the potential rewards.
“I just love her everyday,” said Calvin, Aahlaya’s grandfather.
“If they did nothing, overtime, that’s going to cause damage to the normal half of her brain. Her chance of having a normal life is zero,” explained Dr. Lee. “With this surgery her chance goes up to 85 percent.”
“Dr. Lee has given us some type of hope,” said Rose Mary, Aahlaya’s grandmother.
“I just hope it does work,” said Caresa.
Day of Surgery
Surgery day started early.
“It’s going to be the longest few hours of my life,” said Caresa.
The reality of what this 16 month old is about to endure weighs heavy in the waiting room. Even Aahlaya seems to know something is about to change. As she is wheeled into the surgery room her family cries.
“It’s going to be okay. It’s going to be okay,” said Rose Mary hugging Caresa.
In the state of the art surgery room an MRI allows Dr. Lee another close up look of where he needs to disconnect the right half of Aahlaya’s brain from the left side. It’s a delicate surgery with no room for error. Four hours later and success. Aahlaya pulled through surgery like a champ.
Back home
Weeks later, Aahlaya is finally home. Her recovery is going well. Therapy is now a part of her everyday routine. She must learn to use her hands and feet, but doctors say she should do great. She looks more alert than ever, but that’s not the best part of her surgery. Aahlaya no longer has seizures.
“It feels great to hold her and her not have seizures anymore,” said Rose Mary.
“She’ll be as normal as she can be that’s exactly what we want for her,” said Caresa.
Aahlaya is doing great. Therapy will be a constant part of her life, but doctors think her success will be shared by ten other Central Texas children this year.
Aahlaya's family has set up a fund to help pay for her growing health expenses. You can make a donation at A+ Federal Credit Union to the account number 230407.
