19-year-old musician, Kira Iaconetti, stayed awake and played her guitar as doctors operated her brain to cure her ‘musicogenic epilepsy’, a condition that triggers seizures when the person is exposed to certain types of music.
The procedure, known as ‘awake craniotomy’, was performed at Seattle Children's Hospital in the US.
According to INSIDER, Dr. Jason Hauptman, the surgeon who performed the surgery along with his team, explained that risks in such a procedure are similar to the ones in regular surgery.
One advantage of doing surgery while a patient is awake is that it’s very reassuring that function is being preserved. In a small percentage of patients, (awake brain surgery) could cause transient seizures, but we can fix it immediately if necessary.
Mayo Clinic explains why ‘awake craniotomy’ is performed:
If a tumor needs surgical removal, doctors must be sure that they are not damaging an area of the brain that affects your language, speech and motor skills. It’s difficult to pinpoint those areas exactly before surgery. Awake brain surgery allows the surgeon to know exactly which areas of your brain control those functions and avoid them.
The procedure is a common medical practice across the globe to treat neurological conditions like epileptic seizures and brain tumors.
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