Article in NYT - Epilepsy Surgery

Here's an article in the New York Times with an interview of Hollis's neurosurgeon, Dr. Joseph Madsen. I love that even in the interview, you get a sense of how much of a "teacher" he is: he spent a good deal of time with us, explaining the structure of the brain, what each area does, and the details of how the surgery is performed. We are so fortunate to have people like him on Hollis's medical team.

Hollis's neurosurgeon and one of his success stories

Hollis's neurosurgeon is Joseph Madsen, M.D., at Children's Hospital in Boston. He is a very kind man, and extremely dedicated to his "kids". Here is a link to one of his success stories.

http://www.childrenshospital.org/dream/dream_fall07/extreme_measures.html

Surgery description

Hollis is scheduled to have a "functional hemispherectomy", rather than an "anatomical hemispherectomy". The primary difference is that with a functional, the hemisphere that is causing the seizures is left in place, and is neurologically disconnected from the healthy hemisphere. With the anatomical, the whole hemisphere is removed, leaving a space in the head which fills with cerebrospinal fluid. Here is a link to Cleveland Clinic's description of the procedure.


http://my.clevelandclinic.org/services/functional_hemispherectomy/hic_functional_hemispherectomy.aspx