A breakthrough invention will not only detect a seizure but also prevent it. A device implanted directly in the brain would be able to detect an oncoming epileptic episode and then deliver a controlled amount of chemicals into the brain to alert it, according to a study published by Science Advances.
An epileptic seizure is a neurological phenomena that is triggered by excessive neural activity in the brain. These episodes mostly happen to people who have epilepsy, but anyone is susceptible to them.
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Drug users, people with low blood sugar, and people who have suffered traumatic injuries are especially prone to them. Seizures often cause violent convulsions, spasm, hallucinations, confusion, slurred speech, and even temporary paralysis. They are unpleasant at best, and life threatening at worst.
Biomedical scientists from various renowned European and British universities have made made this device which will pump ions and deliver neurotransmitters to the part of the brain that is affected. These transmitters inhibit brain neurons and stop seizures. This transmitter is completely natural, and does not debilitate the brain in any way.
However, there are definitely some side effects to this. One of the researchers, Christopher Proctor at the University of Cambridge, pointed out that the neurotransmitters sent out by the device could affect other parts of the brain as well, and alter people’s mood over time. This is because the transmitters do not have any particular target unlike a normal medicine or drug. It uniformly conveys a message to all parts of the brain.
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So far, as with most experimental drugs and medical inventions, the device has only been tested in mice. Although they have been successful, it will still be a few years before human beings have access to this invention.
However, it opens new doors for the medical industry. So far, conventional medicine has not been able to address neurological disorders. This could totally change that. This idea could be used in other fields such as mental health as well!