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Man in coma for six years wakes after doctors 'jump-start' his brain
Last updated at 23:52pm on 01.08.07A patient has been woken from a six-year coma-like state by pioneering surgery.
The 38-year-old American, who suffered brain damage in a mugging, can now talk, chew and swallow.
The treatment, in which electrodes were implanted in the brain, offers hope to the families of thousands of Britons with major head injuries.
Doctors describe the change in the man's condition as remarkable. His family say he now has a quality of life they never thought possible.
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Probes inserted deep into the patient's brain can be seen in this x-ray
Patients in a minimally-conscious state show signs of being aware of their surroundings and are more alert than those in a coma or in a persistent vegetative state.
They may even be able to follow someone with their eyes.
Such periods of alertness are fleeting, however. There are few effective drugs and recovery is not guaranteed.
In extreme cases, a court can give permission for feeding to be stopped and life support equipment to be switched off.
The successful treatment, carried out at the Cleveland Clinic, Ohio, will intensify the debate over whether it is right to end a life.
Campaigners say doctors should never give up hope that a brain-damaged patient will recover.
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A computer simulation shows where the probes are sunk into the brain
Unable to chew or swallow, the Cleveland patient, who has been identified only as an artist with two brothers, was fed by tube and could communicate solely through slight movements of his eyes and fingers.
Although he still does not initiate conversation, the surgery has allowed him to respond to questions with answers of up to three words. Several weeks ago, he recited the first half of the U.S. oath of allegiance without help.
The patient has also regained some movement in his limbs.
Electrodes were inserted into his thalamus, the region believed to be key in consciousness, to boost its speech and movement signals.
His mother said: "My son, as well as the entire family, had little hope of further recovery. Now he can eat, express himself and let us know if he is in pain.
"He can cry and he can laugh and, most importantly, he can say, 'Mommy' and 'Pop' and he can say, 'I love you Mommy'. I still cry every time I see my son but it is tears of joy."
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Doctors insert the probes
Professor Joseph Fins, of Weill Cornell Medical College in New York, said: "If this achievement is replicated, its success could usher in a whole new era for the treatment of patients in the minimally-conscious state."
Paul Matthews, professor of clinical neuroscience at Imperial College London, counselled caution.
"The current study is based on a single case," he said. "More experience with the approach is needed. This report does not suggest that deep brain stimulation cures minimally conscious state.
"However, it emphasises that improvements can be made long after an injury."
In 2004, a 39-year-old man from Arkansas woke up after 19 years in a minimally-conscious state. Doctors believe that his badly-damaged brain healed itself by growing new tissue.
The Cleveland man's recovery is documented in the latest edition of the journal Nature.
