A London woman said she is seizure free after a rare epilepsy treatment at London Health Sciences Centre (LHSC).
Christine Kauzen, 26, was diagnosed with epilepsy in 2020.
She believed she was having panic attacks that became increasingly severe.
Kauzen said she had a convulsion seizure in October 2020 and was diagnosed with a specific type that affects both temporal lobes.
Temporal lobe seizures are normally treated with medication, or by removing the lobe that is causing the seizures.
The London Health Sciences Centre said Kauzen was not responding to medication and because both of her temporal lobes were causing the seizures removal was not an option.
"my seizures were happening every other week for a period of three days at a time, and sometimes it was more frequent," she said. "This would reset my memory every single time and I would lose memory of the days I had seizures and those leading up to them."
Dr. David Steven, a Neurosurgeon at LHSC recommended a Responsive Neurostimulation (RNS) device be surgically implanted into Kauzen's skull.
The device detects when the seizures are going to happen by measuring electrical activity within the temporal lobes.
"The device delivers an impulse to confuse the section of the brain and reset the neurons to prevent the seizure, kind of like a pacemaker," said Dr. Steven
He said the device records the seizures and pinpoints exactly where they come from, allowing neurologists to use the data to track any changes or improvements in seizure activity.
Currently, the RNS device is only approved in the United States which makes Kauzen the first person outside of the U.S to receive the device.
She was able to get the device after Dr. Steven advocated for the treatment and applied through Health Canada's Special Access Program.
Kauzen received the device in July 2024.
She has had only one seizure and that was immediately after surgery.
Kauzen said she has also gained back her memory.
"I am now planning my future. I am going to concerts again and doing fun things because now I am not scared to live," she said.
Dr. Steven said Kauzen is an example of why he does work he does.
"Epilepsy is one of those conditions where the person looks normal until they have a seizure and seizures are often unpredictable, so there is a constant threat and fear for those patients," Dr. Steven said.