Fort Worth, TX,
26
March
2023
|
15:54 PM
America/Chicago

4-Year-Old Girl With Epilepsy Undergoes Surgery at Cook Children's, Reduces Her Daily Seizures by the Hundreds

The story of courage and hope: Sofia Gutierrez-Lopez had a successful hemispherectomy at Cook Children's and now her quality of life has dramatically improved.

Sofia pic

Sunday, March 26, 2023 is Epilepsy Awareness Day to spotlight this neurological condition that affects nearly 50 million people worldwide. People are encouraged to wear purple. 

By Ashley Antle

There was a time when constant seizures plagued 4-year-old Sofia Gutierrez-Lopez’s life. They started when she was 19 months old and gradually the seizures occurred hundreds of times within 24 hours. Day and night, Sofia’s brain misfired, stealing her ability to hit developmental milestones and live a normal life.

No amount or combination of seizure medication helped, which is common with Sofia’s type of epilepsy. Sofia has a severe malformation of the left side of her brain, and that’s where her seizures originated. Her parents were desperate for something — anything — that would free their daughter from the unrelenting seizures and allow her to have as normal a childhood as possible.

In April 2022, Sofia underwent surgery at Cook Children’s. Now a year later, her seizure activity is dramatically reduced and her quality of life dramatically improved. Since surgery, Sofia had one day where she experienced three seizures, compared to hundreds every day before surgery.

M. Scott Perry, M.D., an epileptologist and head of neurosciences at the Jane and John Justin Institute for Mind Health at Cook Children’s, was one of several doctors treating Sofia. He recommended a functional hemispherectomy — a surgery that removes or disconnects half of the brain to interrupt the seizures and stop their assault on the healthy side of the brain. In Sofia’s case, it would be the left side.

Like any surgery, it had its risks, but so did living with a brain under constant attack. Sofia already had developmental delays, and every seizure increased the potential for more. Eventually, the seizures could rob her of the ability to walk, talk and eat. Children with uncontrolled seizures also are at greater risk for sudden death during a seizure.

“In this case, the risk of surgery is weighed against the risk of her continuing to have seizures,” explained Daniel Hansen, M.D., a pediatric neurosurgeon specializing in epilepsy surgery and medical director of neuro-trauma at Cook Children’s Medical Center. “The reality is epilepsy surgery is really quite safe when done by a trained epilepsy surgeon or a pediatric neurosurgeon with epilepsy experience.

“The risk of catastrophic operative complications or unexpected postoperative complications is very low,” Hansen said. “Even knowing that there will likely be permanent changes to strength and vision on the opposite side of the body that are unavoidable, the trade-off to being seizure free is, for most children, completely worth it.” Sofia and her mom Cristina

Fateful Connection on Trip

Even so, having a portion of their child’s brain disconnected was a scary thought for Sofia’s parents.

“It's crazy to think that they could actually go in her brain, take part of her brain out and that is going to help her,” said Cristina Gutierrez-Lopez, Sofia’s mother. “It sounded like fiction.”

Sofia’s parents weren’t quite ready for that step until a trip to Mexico to visit family brought a turn of events that not only confirmed the surgery was necessary, but that Cook Children’s was the right place with the right doctors to have it done. While in Mexico, Sofia suffered a seizure emergency that sent her to the emergency department of a local hospital. A physician there seconded the diagnosis of Cook Children’s neurologists and explained that surgery was the only option for any relief.

Without knowing the family’s already established ties to Cook Children’s, the physician told them about a neurologist he knew in Texas to be one of the best in epilepsy treatment. He attended a presentation made by this Texas doctor at a medical conference. That Texas physician turned out to be Dr. Perry. The same Dr. Perry that Sofia had seen as a patient before her fateful trip to Mexico.

Sofia’s parents were stunned at the connection. Her mother said it was confirmation that God had orchestrated these events to bring them to a place of certainty and peace and that surgery was the right next step for Sofia.

When they returned to Fort Worth, the family met again with Dr. Perry and discussed the hemispherectomy. He introduced them to Dr. Hansen who would perform the procedure. Gutierrez-Lopez told the medical team they were ready.

“I am clear on all the risks,” she said. “I understand that this is the only thing that can possibly help my daughter.”

“When we went home from the hospital, I took home the same Sofia I brought to the hospital, but improved,” Gutierrez-Lopez said.Sofia with Dr. Perry and Dr. Hansen “She had the same communication skills and the same physical ability. Everything was the same or better, plus no seizures.” Sofia 3

As complicated and risky as epilepsy surgery sounds, outcomes like Sofia’s are actually common.

“Sophia's case and her outcome is nothing short of astounding,” Dr. Hansen said. “I mean, we go from a girl who had literally hundreds of seizures a day to almost seizure-free. But although that outcome is amazing and astounding, it is the expected outcome. This is not a one-off sort of thing for children with epilepsy.”

Breaking Cultural Barriers

A perception that the brain is too complex to fix and, therefore, should not be touched is a common misconception, especially among minority groups, according to both Dr. Perry and Dr. Hansen. Dr. Perry is studying the disparities that exist within epilepsy treatment and, in particular, surgery. Many of those disparities are already well documented but a lot of cases use insurance databases to illustrate the fact that more white people have epilepsy surgery than non-white people, according to Dr. Perry. The problem with this approach, he says, is that it only looks at those who underwent surgery and not at those who were offered but declined.

“We say there's a disparity, which is true, but we don't know why there's a disparity,” Dr. Perry said. “Was it because they weren't offered the opportunity because maybe their insurance is not as good? Or their social situation isn't as good, or they were offered but declined for whatever reason?”

Dr. Perry’s study, which now has a database of more than 2,000 patients, examines the cases of those referred for epilepsy surgery and any differences between the work-up of each case. For example, do people of color have fewer medical tests and therefore are not revealed to be good candidates?

“It turns out that the work-ups are not really different based on race or ethnicity,” Dr. Perry said. “However, based on the data we’ve collected so far, people of color are almost four times more likely to decline the opportunity for surgery when offered.”

The question now becomes, why?  Sofia and her mom Cristina 2

“Insurance as a primary factor is not the whole story,” Dr. Perry said. “I think that's one limitation, but another limitation is there are cultural barriers to getting epilepsy surgery, and if we don't understand those barriers, then getting everybody the best insurance is not going to fix the problem. There's an aversion to this treatment approach and that's something we need to explore a little further because we need to learn what their concerns are so that we can address those barriers and make sure this opportunity is available to everybody.”

Tracy Vang, director of equity and inclusion at Cook Children’s, agrees. She cited the book “The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down” by Anne Fadiman as an example of how cultural beliefs intersect with medicine when it comes to how some perceive illness, what causes it, and how it should be treated.

That’s why Gutierrez-Lopez shares her daughter’s story. 

She wants other parents, particularly those who share her Latino heritage, to know that while these are hard decisions to make, parents should consider the possibilities for their child over their own fear or perceptions of surgery.

“Fantasy” is the word she used to describe her initial impression of epilepsy surgery. After much of her own research, putting her faith in action, and trusting the capability of Sofia’s doctors, she pushed past her disbelief and fear. 

“As a mother, you never want to expose yourself to losing your children or anything bad happening to them, but when you have special needs children, the pain of seeing them suffer teaches you to be strong enough to take risks when you know there is hope for a better quality of life for them,” Lopez-Rosas said. “We trust in God Almighty and in the wisdom he has given to the doctors and put our little ones in their hands. They would never suggest surgery if they did not know that there is a great chance of success.”

Jane and John Justin Institute for Mind Health at Cook Children's Jane and John Justin Institute for Mind Health at Cook Children’s Medical Center – Fort Worth.

Kids with neurological disorders often face many challenges - and see many specialists. For many families that means multiple visits to different locations. At Cook Children’s, we’re changing the way we deliver care by making their journey easier. How? By opening the doors to care that’s centered around the unique needs of our patients and their families. 

Introducing the Jane and John Justin Institute for Mind Health at Cook Children’s – bringing together nine specialties under one roof. Pediatric specialists in neurological, developmental and behavioral health are changing the way we deliver health care. Together, we’re healing minds and bodies, and sharing smiles that warm the soul and connecting care for kids unlike anyone else.

Learn more about the Justin Institute.