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Arkansas Children's Hospital
General Information 501-364-1100
Arkansas Children's Northwest
General Information 479-725-6800
Palliative means relief from symptoms and stress of an illness. This surgery may lower the number and severity of seizures. It is usually not a cure for epilepsy. This type of surgery is used for many types of epilepsy. It is used most when seizures come from more than one area of the brain or when another type of surgery would likely lead to loss of brain function. There are two types of palliative epilepsy surgery.
A neurosurgeon puts a small electrical generator under the skin in the chest. A wire is attached to the vagus nerve, which is in the neck. The wire stimulates the vagus nerve on a set schedule. The surgery usually takes 1 or 2 hours and your child will go home after staying in the hospital one night. General anesthesia is given for the surgery. Your child will be able to do normal activities 1 to 2 weeks after surgery. This device helps (usually reduces seizures but not completely stop it) over half of the people that have it.
The corpus callosum is the part of the brain that connects the two sides. A doctor will cut this connection and this will prevent seizures on one side of the brain from moving to the other side. It usually does not totally stop seizures but makes them less severe. This surgery takes a few hours. After that, your child will stay in the hospital for 4-5 days and may need inpatient rehabilitation. Recovery at home will take 4-6 weeks.
This surgery is most helpful for people who have:
The University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS), Arkansas Children’s, Baptist Health and Proton International (PI) have signed a Letter of Intent to bring proton therapy — an alternative to radiation therapy for treating cancer — to Arkansas.
Bariatric surgery may be an option for some children who have not been able to maintain weight loss and control their health with diet and exercise alone.
Diagnostic epilepsy surgery is used to find areas in the brain where the seizures come from.
Therapeutic epilepsy surgery is used to improve or cure seizures. Learn about this procedure at Arkansas Children's.
Radiation uses special kinds of energy waves or seeds to fight cancer cells and prevent them from growing and spreading. The type of radiation therapy used depends on the kind of cancer being treated.
In some cases, surgery is needed to remove a tumor or to remove sections of bone, muscle or soft tissue that is affected by cancer or benign growth.
Our surgeons do everything possible to restore the affected bone or limb. After the affected bone and tissue is removed, the remaining gap in the bone is replaced with a bone graft or an artificial metal part.
At Arkansas Children’s your child will have access to a wide range of treatments, from traditional to experimental. Treatments may include chemotherapy.
The technology used at the Burn Plastics clinic includes Lumenis UltraPulse Laser Therapy.
Our comprehensive pediatric epilepsy program is an NAEC Level 4 Center, offering innovative diagnostic and treatment methods, improving the quality of patients’ lives.
Learn more about how our specialized pediatric epilepsy care can change the short and long-term quality of life for patients who suffer from seizures.
The pediatric vascular anomalies team at Arkansas Children's treats various hemangiomas (also called strawberry birthmarks).