Northeast Regional Epilepsy Group offers New Jersey patient hope with a newly FDA-approved device for epilepsy
Hackensack, NJ (PRWEB) July 22, 2015 -- The Northeast Regional Epilepsy Group in Hackensack, NJ has just implanted the first New Jersey patient with the newly FDA-approved device called the AspireSR®. This option was chosen because the patient suffered from multifocal epilepsy and was still having daily seizures despite taking four different anti-epileptic medications.
Treatment with the AspireSR® generator does not involve brain surgery, but rather the medical device - implanted in a simple, out-patient procedure under the skin of the chest - delivers mild, pulsed electrical signals to the vagus nerve, which communicates with the brain. The AspireSR® has a sensor attached which monitors heart rate continuously. Since heart rate increases are seen before many seizures occur, the ability to provide stimulation at these times provides a way to respond directly at the time of a seizure. When the heart rate increases, the device kicks on, stimulating a nerve that communicates with the brain potentially preventing a full-blown seizure.
Co-director of the Epilepsy Program, Bergen County of New Jersey, Dr. Enrique Feoli, commented “The AspireSR® generator is a very important development for us in the field of epilepsy and for our New Jersey patients, because this is a minimally invasive option that gives us a novel way to treat patients who are not responding to medications and who cannot undergo brain surgery.”
Epilepsy is the fourth most common neurological disorder and one in 26 people will develop epilepsy at some point in their lifetime. Seizure medications are typically the first option for treating epilepsy. While many people with epilepsy achieve seizure control with these drugs, as many as one-third of people with epilepsy experience seizures that persist in spite of treatment with medications alone. This is where the AspireSR® generator can assist many patients in reducing seizures and medication burden, while improving quality of their lives.
For an interview, please contact: Shannon Brophy, RN, MSN, APN-BC at sbrophy(at)epilepsygroup(dot)com or 201-343-6676.
Launched in 1998, NEREG is a multi-site practice in New Jersey, New York and Connecticut that offers unique services and comprehensive care to children and adults with epilepsy. NEREG provides state-of-the-art diagnostic procedures, 24/7 patient service, highly skilled and experienced practitioners, and exceptional specialty programs designed to cover a broad range of health care needs in each epilepsy and seizure patient. NEREG consists of nineteen board-certified epilepsy specialists with fellowship training in adult and childhood epilepsy, as well as many other highly skilled health care providers including pediatric/adult neurosurgeons, clinical psychologists, neuropsychologists, epilepsy nurse practitioners, a specially trained nutritionist and social worker.
Kim Potts, Northeast Regional Epilepsy Group, http://www.epilepsygroup.com, +1 (212) 661-7460, [email protected]
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