Brain 'pacemaker' may prevent epileptic seizures

A vagus nerve stimulator implanted into the body gives periodic electrical stimulation to the brain to help prevent epileptic seizures.

LOS ANGELES (CNN) -- Nolan Hutain had to give up baseball because of epilepsy, but a new brain pacemaker has provided considerable relief and inspired the 12-year-old's dream to return to the ball diamond.

Among 2 million Americans suffering from epilepsy, Nolan knows all too well about the violent seizures associated with the nervous system disorder.

"You see all these flashing things around you, but they're a lot bigger. You can't really see that well -- blackouts -- you go completely blind," he says.

Ten to 15 seizures a week caused Nolan to miss school and fall behind. He had to drop baseball altogether.

Since he wasn't responding well to medication, his family pursued a different medical route. He had a vagus nerve stimulator implanted in his brain in June.

The $9,000 device is best described as a pacemaker for the brain. To make it work, surgeons make a pocket in the chest to hold a transmitter, called a NeuroCybernetic Prosthesis, or NCP, according to Dr. Clarence Greene, a pediatric neurosurgeon.

Nolan Hutain places a magnet across his chest to lessen the severity of a seizure.

The vagus nerve stimulator has a generator similar to those used in heart pacemakers. The NCP generator is computer- controlled, and powered by a battery that can last up to five years.

Doctors use a computer to program doses of periodic electrical stimulation to prevent seizures.

Nolan has another weapon if he feels the onset of a seizure. When Nolan places a magnet across his chest, an episode has a shorter duration and seems less intense, says Dr. Mary Kay Dyes, a neurologist.

The NCP has been on the market for two years and implanted in 4,500 patients, mostly adults. For Nolan it means a chance to live a more normal life. He hopes to regain enough control to spend more time in school, and perhaps even play baseball again.