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World First Epilepsy Device Fitted in UK Boy's Skull

The Picostim neurotransmitter is made by UK company Amber Therapeutics. (File/Reuters)
The Picostim neurotransmitter is made by UK company Amber Therapeutics. (File/Reuters)
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World First Epilepsy Device Fitted in UK Boy's Skull

The Picostim neurotransmitter is made by UK company Amber Therapeutics. (File/Reuters)
The Picostim neurotransmitter is made by UK company Amber Therapeutics. (File/Reuters)

A boy with severe epilepsy has become the first patient in the world to trial a new device fitted in their skull to control seizures.
The neurostimulator, which sends electrical signals deep into his brain, has reduced Oran Knowlson’s daytime seizures by 80%.
Speaking to BBC, his mother, Justine, said he was happier and had a “much better quality of life”.
The surgery was carried out in October as part of a trial at Great Ormond Street Hospital in London when Oran - who is now 13 - was 12.
Oran, from Somerset, has Lennox-Gastaut syndrome, a treatment-resistant form of epilepsy which he developed at the age of three.
Since then he has suffered several daily seizures ranging from two dozen to hundreds.
Prior to surgery, Oran’s mum explained how Oran’s epilepsy dominated his life: "It has robbed him of all of his childhood."
She told BBC Oran had a range of different seizures, including those where he fell to the ground, shook violently, and lost consciousness.
She said at times he would stop breathing and require emergency medication to resuscitate him.
Oran has autism and ADHD, but Justine says his epilepsy is by far the biggest hurdle: "I had a fairly bright three-year-old, and within a few months of his seizures commencing he deteriorated rapidly, and lost a lot of skills."
Oran is part of the CADET project - a series of trials assessing the safety and effectiveness of deep brain stimulation for severe epilepsy.
The partnership involves Great Ormond Street Hospital, University College London, King’s College Hospital and the University of Oxford.

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Danish Archaeologists Unearth 50 Viking Skeletons

Massacred 10th century Vikings found in a mass grave at St John’s College, Oxford. Photograph: Thames Valley Archaeological Services/PA
Massacred 10th century Vikings found in a mass grave at St John’s College, Oxford. Photograph: Thames Valley Archaeological Services/PA
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Danish Archaeologists Unearth 50 Viking Skeletons

Massacred 10th century Vikings found in a mass grave at St John’s College, Oxford. Photograph: Thames Valley Archaeological Services/PA
Massacred 10th century Vikings found in a mass grave at St John’s College, Oxford. Photograph: Thames Valley Archaeological Services/PA

The excavation of a large Viking-era burial site in Denmark has unearthed 50 unusually well-preserved skeletons that archaeologists expect will help shed light on the lives of the Nordic people best known for their seafaring exploits in the Middle Ages.

The skeletons, discovered near Denmark's third-largest city Odense, were kept intact by high water levels and favorable soil conditions that prevented them from decomposing, according to Michael Borre Lundoe, the excavation leader from Museum Odense, Reuters reported.

"Normally when we excavate Viking graves, we'd be lucky if there were two teeth left in the grave besides the grave goods. But here we have the skeletons fully preserved," said Lundoe.

"The skeletons are so amazing. They are so well preserved. There are five fingers, five toes. And that opens up a whole new set of possibilities for discoveries," he said.

Rare artifacts such as knives, glass pearls and brooches dated between year 850 to 970 were also found at the excavation, which began six months ago.

Lundoe said the grave gifts indicate most of the people were part of a small community of farmers, although a woman of higher status was buried with a silver-ornamented knife and a piece of glass which was rare in the Viking Age.

Archaeologists took soil samples to search for pollen to determine which season the person was buried in and what textiles they wore.

An x-ray of a soil block from the site revealed an oval brooch, an iconic Viking Age jewelry piece associated with women's garments, covered with wood and human remains.

On the back of another brooch with period-specific ornaments, mineralized woven textile fragments provided evidence of the type of dress worn in the Viking Age, the archaeologists said.

Most of the skeletons have been removed from the graves and packed in cardboard boxes at the museum to dry out before the examination and final cleaning.