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Brain surgery alternatives… | January 17, 2023
"It's not brain surgery." And it doesn't have to be.
There are a host of epilepsy procedures that are minimally invasive.
The Vagus Nerve Stimulation
(VNS) has been used to treat more than 30,000 epilepsy patients worldwide.
It's designed to prevent or interrupt seizures or electrical disturbances in the brain for people with hard to control seizures.
Used in conjunction with anti-seizure medications, the VNS uses electrical pulses that are delivered to the vagus nerve in the neck and travel up into the brain.
It's not clear how this inhibits seizures, but the device can reduce seizures by 20 to 40% and completely control seizures in about 5% of people.
Side-effects of vagus nerve stimulation include hoarseness, throat pain, coughing, shortness of breath, tingling and muscle pain.
Responsive Neurostimulation System
The RNS consists of a miniaturized, implanted computer (that's flat and about the size of a half-dollar). It can detect seizures from electrodes implanted into or on the surface of the brain and then delivers an electrical pulse to stop them.
While other devices stimulate the nervous system continuously or in a predetermined pattern, the Neurostimulator implant is unique in that it monitors the brain, delivering jolts of electricity only when it detects the abnormal electrical activity that signals the onset of a seizure.
"It's like dousing a spark before it becomes a flame," said Martha Morrell, Neuropace's chief medical officer.
Over 50 percent of patients undergoing surgical removal of brain tissue causing seizures will be cured of their epilepsy," says Jason M. Schwalb, M.D., Director, Movement Disorder and Behavioral Neurosurgery at Henry Ford Health System.
"However, there are people who are not candidates for this type of surgery because of potential side-effects. Until now, we have not had great treatment options. The RNS system is an attractive option for these patients, especially since it is reversible."
TNS is a new nerve stimulation therapy that requires NO SURGERY and reduces seizures among those who are drug resistant by about 40%.
A recent clinical trial showed that at the end of the 18-week study, 40% of patients receiving TNS experienced a significant improvement in seizure reduction.
The TNS system has two components: a hand-held pulse generator — which is about the size of a cell phone — that creates the electrical signal and a disposable custom electrical patch — much like a gel pad — that delivers the signal to its target, the trigeminal nerve.
TMS is a noninvasive type of brain stimulation which uses a strong magnet held outside the head to deliver electromagnetic currents to alter the electrical activity in the brain.
This therapy has shown great promise for reducing seizures by reducing neuronal excitability.
Some of the earliest studies found that transcranial magnetic stimulation can induce a prolonged period of protection from the types of electrical activity that cause seizures.
Case studies have found that this technique can reduce seizure frequency by over 60% in some patients.
In addition, researchers found that the TMS treatment also improved the mood of participants. Since depression is a common problem in people with epilepsy, this finding could have significant impact on the quality of life for people who suffer from the disorder.
The most serious side-effect associated with transcranial magnetic stimulation is a headache, though there is a small risk of seizure during this treatment. However, this risk is low and this technique is considered to be safe.
(DBS) may offer a new treatment option for fighting epileptic seizures in those who don't respond well to other therapies.
Similar to the VNS, it's minimally invasive and consists of implanting tiny electrodes in the brain that release electrical pulses, reducing the frequency of partial seizures and secondarily generalized seizures.
It also has the ability to constantly analyze brain activity, then deliver the correct electrical stimulation.
Overall, researchers say more than half of those treated experienced a reduction in seizures of at least 50%.
Clinical studies have found that it is generally safe, with the adverse effects being transient and mild.
However, one of the advantages of deep brain stimulation is that it can be switched off — if side-effects appear — and the entire procedure is reversible.
Revolutionary laser surgery — a safer, less invasive alternative to brain surgery as we know it — has slowly been achieving success with brain tumor patients.
Instead of the more traditional craniotomy, in which a bone flap is removed from the skull, neurosurgeons are using MRI-guided laser technology to destroy lesions in hard-to-access regions of the brain.
"This is a tool for patients with tumors who have been told they do not have other options" — Shabbar F. Danish, MD, of Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School and Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital — says about laser-assisted thermal ablation.
"This is also a viable option for patients who do not want radiation therapy or general anesthesia. Additionally, we can take their hospital stay from four to seven days down to 24 hours."
The procedure marries the precision of navigation tools…with an MRI-guided laser probe that's as small and light as a pen.
"What this does is you just have to make a hole that will take you to the middle of the tumor, and (ablate) the tumor."
It's actually done in the MRI suite, so when the probe is confirmed to be in the correct position in the MRI suite you heat it and you can watch directly on the MRI scanner what area is being heated using the program.
After that you can do another MRI scan, since the patient is already there, to show if the tumor is gone. So you have instant gratification."
Gamma Knife Surgery
A number of clinics now offer Gamma Knife Surgery for some kinds of epilepsy, and researchers are working to improve this type of procedure.
Gamma knife surgery, which uses a minimally invasive tool, delivers radiation treatment as though it were an actual knife, offering the kind of precision and targeting as surgery.
These finely focused radiation beams intersect at a specific region of the brain to alter the cells in that region.
In many cases, this can stop the abnormal electrical activity that causes the seizures.
A study of gamma knife surgery in patients with temporal lobe epilepsy, found that 67% of the treated patients were seizure-free 2 years after surgery.
Another study published looked at the use of gamma knife surgery to perform callosotomy in patients with severe generalized epilepsy with drop attacks.
The results were comparable to a traditional callosotomy, in which a band of nerve fibers connecting the two halves (hemispheres) of the brain are cut, disabling communication between the hemispheres and preventing the spread of seizures from one side of the brain to the other.
(This procedure, sometimes called split-brain surgery, is for patients with extreme forms of uncontrollable epilepsy who have intense seizures that can lead to violent falls and potentially serious injury.)
Researchers are continuing to test gamma knife surgery to learn what types of epilepsy can be effectively treated, what radiation frequencies are best, what type of pre-surgical testing is necessary, and what benefits and side-effects are possible with this type of surgery.
Since the 1970′s, researchers have demonstrated in over 50 controlled studies that a special form of brain wave biofeedback — now called "neurofeedback" — safely and effectively "retrains" the brain to stabilize its activity.
The treatment has been used successfully with all types of seizure disorders. Often the effects are permanent.
The procedure begins by attaching EEG electrodes to the body to gauge brain wave activity. And the learning takes place by practicing computer "game" challenges while receiving positive reinforcement from the computer.
One of the most beneficial aspects of biofeedback is the reduction of stress in everyday life, which in turn, also helps reduce seizures.
According to research, approximately 50% seizure control is attained within approximately 2-3 months and full seizure control can occur somewhere between 6-18 months.
However, the drawback is that biofeedback is not covered by health insurance, requires many treatments, and is expensive.
Cell Transplantation
Another emerging approach for treating epilepsy is cell transplantation.
Researchers can transplant either mature cells or stem cells derived from fetal tissue.
Cells used for transplant are sometimes genetically engineered to produce substances to reduce seizures or protect neurons from damage.
Cell transplantation therapies for epilepsy are still in preliminary stages of development.
However, the encouraging results of animal studies suggest that this type of therapy may eventually be used to treat drug-resistant epilepsy in humans.
One study tested whether transplanting GABA producing cells into the brains of rats could suppress seizures. (GABA cells are neurotransmitters that slow down the activity of nerve cells in the brain.)
The cells raised GABA levels in the brain tissue, raised the seizure threshold, shortened the duration of brain discharges after seizures, and slowed the development of seizures.
Another study tested the effect of neural stem cell transplantation in rats with status epilepticus induced by a toxin.
The neural stem cells inhibited and decreased neuron excitability.
Yet another study found that grafting specific types of fetal hippocampal cells into the brains of adult rats with toxin-induced brain lesions, reduced the amount of abnormal nerve fiber growth in the brain.
The grafted cells also developed connections with other regions of the brain, suggesting that they may be able to form functional brain circuits.
The discovery of gene mutations that cause specific epilepsy syndromes has led to the possibility of using gene therapy to counter the effects of these mutations.
In gene therapy, researchers typically use viral vectors — transmitting modified genetic material — to introduce new genes into brain cells.
Viruses can also be used to introduce genes for proteins such as GABA into non-neuronal cells.
These cells are then transplanted into the brain to act as "factories" to produce potentially therapeutic proteins.
One advantage of gene therapy is that it can alter the cells in just one part of the brain.
Researchers can control the activity of the introduced genes by using a genetic "switch" that responds to antibiotics or other chemicals.
This allows doctors to turn the gene therapy off if it causes intolerable side-effects or other problems.
Theoretically, this type of therapy should last longer and cause fewer side-effects than medication.
Females who have epilepsy often have increased severity of their seizures at specific points during their menstrual cycle — known as catamenial epilepsy — when progesterone levels are low.
Research has found that estrogen increases neuronal excitability and progesterone reduces neuronal activity, which suggests that an imbalance between estrogen and progesterone could increase seizure frequency.
Lower progesterone levels are also associated with more frequent seizures in women, and elevated estrogen levels during perimenopause also appear to increase the possibility of seizures.
Progesterone restoration therapy has been studied as a possible treatment for epilepsy and initial results have been promising.
The effects of hormones on epilepsy still needs to be better defined since some studies have suggested that estrogen can have pro-epileptic and anti-epileptic results, depending on the levels.
Also, women are not the only patients that can have their epilepsy affected by sex hormone levels. Testosterone and its metabolites also have anti-seizure effects.
In a case report of a man with post traumatic seizures, testosterone therapy caused his seizures to lessen and nearly disappear.
These findings suggest that maintaining optimal testosterone levels may lessen seizure disorders in men. (Free testosterone is a good indicator of testosterone activity; optimal levels are 20 – 25 pg/mL.)
Naturopathic medicine treats the whole person, taking into account the interaction of physical, mental, and emotional factors as causes of a condition.
It seeks to recognize the importance of the whole person instead of just single organ systems or particular symptoms.
When it comes to epilepsy, naturopathy and a range of related treatment methods may have a good deal to offer, as long as it is coordinated with your neurological care.
Options include: aromatherapy, acupuncture, behavior control, massage, yoga, meditation, stress management and vitamins, to name just a few.
The main argument for treating epilepsy — or any disease — with homeopathy is the concept that each patient is different.
Though they may be diagnosed with the same disease or disorder, their symptoms are different, as are their responses to treatment and medication.
This is why people believe there are many benefits to treating epilepsy based on symptoms rather than the generalized disease.
By being able to zero in on exact symptoms which patients are experiencing, it's believed that homeopathy will have a better chance of treating those specific symptoms.
Alone, homeopathy may not help all cases of epilepsy.
But together with conventional treatment, it's seen success as a supportive line of treatment.
And in cases of drug-resistant epilepsy, people often do respond significantly to homeopathy.
Therapy can go a long way towards reducing the fear, anxiety, depression, and isolation of epilepsy.
Sure, your epilepsy isn't going to disappear. But learning to accept it, live with it and become a survivor rather than a victim, can go a long way to a happy and productive life.
I had epilepsy for 20+ years. And I know for a fact, that therapy has been a life-saver for me.
But ultimately, like everything else, your choice of treatment is just that. A decision you make that's hopefully well-informed and best suits your particular circumstances.
No one can tell you what to do, or which course is best. It's your choice.
But it's always good to know you have options.
And if you have a particular treatment that has worked especially well for you — please sing out and let us know!
To subscribe to Epilepsy Talk and get the latest articles, simply go to the bottom box of the right column, enter your email address and click on "Follow."
http://www.medicinenet.com/vagus_nerve_stimulation_vns/article.htm
http://www.wisegeek.com/contest/what-is-vagus-nerve-stimulation-or-vns.htm
http://www.npr.org/2011/07/27/138619259/new-device-reduces-seizures-no-surgery-required?ft=1&f=100
http://www.mayoclinic.org/tests-procedures/transcranial-magnetic-stimulation/home/ovc-20163795
http://www.webmd.com/epilepsy/news/20100317/deep-brain-stimulation-stops-seizures
https://www.disabled-world.com/health/neurology/epilepsy/laser-surgery.php
http://www.newswise.com/articles/gamma-knife-surgery-benefits-epilepsy-patients-beyond-seizure-reduction
http://epilepsyinanutshell.blogspot.com/2008/02/gamma-knife.html
http://www.epilepsyhealth.com/biofeedback.html
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/12/131208090333.htm?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+sciencedaily%2Fhealth_medicine%2Fepilepsy+
http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/releases/268307.php
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Tags: biofeedback, Brain Surgery Alternatives, Cell Transplantation, counseling, Deep Brain Stimulation, gamma knife surgery, Gene Therapy, Homeopathy, Hormone Imbalances, laser surgery, Naturopathy, neurostimulator, Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation, trigeminal nerve stimulation, Vagus Nerve Stimulation
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Comment by Kenneth — January 17, 2023 @ 10:06 AM
I have an RNS. It's still brain surgery to get that device. I would have preferred to have part of my brain removed but after an intracranial EEG they discovered that there are 6+ places in my brain misfiring. I also used to have the VNS. Unfortunately, neither device has worked for me. Because the RNS can be adjusted even after being implanted there is still hope that there can be improvements.
Comment by Kelly Falk — January 17, 2023 @ 11:13 AM
Has anyone here tried the TMS? That appears to be the least invasive.
Comment by lmillerwnc — January 17, 2023 @ 12:03 PM
Thank you for another excellent post. I always find your posts to be so helpful and encouraging.
Comment by Nancy — January 17, 2023 @ 12:20 PM
I happened upon this post by chance, but I'm glad of it. My partner has epilepsy (due to viral encephalitis) and had an amygdalohippocampectomy about 10 years ago. The brain surgery and the $2,000/month meds helped slightly, but supplementation with high-doses of the amino acid taurine ended his seizures (~4 years so far). If anyone reading isn't familiar, consider running a PubMed search of "taurine and epilepsy" and discuss it with your epileptologist. It was a game-changer for us!
Comment by Esoterica — January 18, 2023 @ 4:23 PM
Thanks for your revelation Esoterica and your fabulous advice!
https://www.liverdoctor.com/magnesium-and-taurine-help-protect-against-seizures/
Comment by Phylis Feiner Johnson — January 18, 2023 @ 4:41 PM
You're welcome! I hope it can help somebody.


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Regional Report Triad March 2012
Regional Report Triad March 20122012-03-152012-03-15http://businessnc.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/bncweblogoblacksmall_space-01.pngBusiness North Carolinahttp://businessnc.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/bncweblogoblacksmall_space-01.png200px200px
Back to March 2012 home page
REGIONALREPORT Triad
Companies are high on the hog
Beginning this year, state law mandates that public utilities generate a portion of their power with swine and poultry waste, which can be converted to methane that fuels turbines. At the same time, companies are looking for ways to reduce their greenhouse-gas emissions, which lead to global warming. Cavanaugh & Associates PA, a Winston-Salem engineering firm, believes it has developed an answer to both problems.
In 2006 — as the General Assembly was mulling over a bill, which it passed a year later, that would require utilities to use renewable energy — Duke University's Nicholas School of the Environment asked Cavanaugh to design a swine-waste system that would generate electricity while protecting the environment. Construction began in 2010 at Loyd Ray Farms, a 9,000-hog operation on about 150 acres near Yadkinville, and was completed last May. The system collects about 80,000 gallons of waste a day in an oxygen-free digester. Bacteria convert organic material into methane, which is trapped under a plastic cover. A compressor pushes the biogas into a generator, which powers the system and half the farm. So far, energy generation is exceeding expectations.
Loyd Ray Farms benefits by getting free electricity, but the construction costs are too expensive — about $800,000 — for most farmers. What makes it feasible on a larger scale is the advantages it affords big business. Although Duke University and U.S. Department of Agriculture grants paid for most of it, Duke Energy Corp. kicked in $117,500, plus $30,000 a year for operations and maintenance. In return, the Charlotte-based utility earns credit toward its renewable- and swine-energy requirements.
Another attribute of the Loyd Ray Farms system is that the combustion of methane to create electricity reduces greenhouse-gas emissions by a factor of 21. This attracted Google Inc. and Duke University, who want to be carbon-neutral. In exchange for their investments in the project, they get carbon offsets, which symbolically reduce their overall emissions.
The annual reduction in greenhouse gases by Loyd Ray Farms' waste-treatment system is equivalent to carbon-dioxide emissions from:
18,677 passenger vehicles
221,522 barrels of oil consumed
519 railcars worth of coal burned
Source: Cavanaugh & Associates
Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center's direct economic impact on Forsyth County in the fiscal year that ended June 30, 2011, according to a study the Winston-Salem-based hospital system commissioned. With more than 11,000 employees in the county, it was
Forsyth's largest employer.
Jobs Greensboro-based Solstas Lab Partners LLC will add over five years to its High Point office, where it employs 860, the largest job expansion in the city in 13 years. The city and Guilford County have approved up to $500,000 each in incentives, while the state will add $450,000. The average annual wage will be $45,000, higher than Guilford's $39,520.
HIGH POINT — High Point University will hire 116 employees by the start of the fall semester, adding 50 faculty to undergraduate and doctoral programs and 66 to administration, food service, security and athletics. The additions will increase employment to about 1,126, with plans calling for 400 more within five years.
WINSTON-SALEM — Law firm Womble Carlyle merged with Columbia, S.C.-based Hall & Bowers, which became Womble Carlyle's 14th office and third in South Carolina. The firm has more than 550 lawyers.
WINSTON-SALEM — Wake Forest University named New York University administrator Rogan Kersh provost. Kersh, a Wake Forest alumnus, will assume the position this summer.
WINSTON-SALEM — Piedmont Propulsion Systems, which repairs and overhauls airplane blades and other parts for propeller manufacturers, will create 25 jobs here within three years, increasing its local workforce to 60. The company will renovate and move into a building at Smith Reynolds Airport. The average annual wage will be $34,304, lower than Forsyth County's average of $41,912.
GREENSBORO — Jeff Gauger will take over as executive editor of the News & Record, effective this month. Gauger had been executive editor of The Repository, a daily newspaper in Canton, Ohio, since July 2007.
WINSTON-SALEM — The Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference will move its basketball tournament from here to Norfolk, Va., beginning in 2013. This year's tournament still will be played in Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum March 5-10. N.C. A&T State and N.C. Central universities are the only North Carolina schools in the conference.
WINSTON-SALEM — BB&T will acquire Roseland, N.J.-based wholesale life-insurance distributor Crump Group for $570 million, adding about 1,800 employees to its roughly 30,00
acquisition, BB&T, Cavanaugh & Associates PA, Crump Group, Duke University, economic impact, editor, General Assembly, Greensboro newspaper, Hall & Bowers, High Point University, Jeff Gauger, jobs, layoffs, Loyd Ray Farms, merger, Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference tournament, News & Record, Norfolk, Piedmont Propulsion Systems, poultry waste, provost, Reynolds American, Rogan Kersh, Smith Reynolds Airport, South Carolina, swine waste, tobacco, Virginia, Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center, Wake Forest University, Winston-Salem, Womble Carlyle, Yadkinville
BusinessNC
For over 35 years, North Carolina's biggest and best business magazine.
Packers Sanitation Services to layoff 102 workers in Monroe
Proposed Atrium, Wake Forest Baptist agreement moves forward
CNBC names Winston-Salem firm as top U.S. financial adviser
N.C. governor's salary is less than 5% of Mack Brown's

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


motor finance sector and was a staunch supporter of the industry.
a range of industry associations and organisations.
online, and possibly getting to a valuable demographic?
margins. A lesson there for the UK?


Impax Asset Management Group plc (the "Company") expects to announce its results for the year ended 30 September 2018 on Thursday 6 December 2018.
There will be a meeting and conference call for analysts on the day of the results at 10.30am.
A copy of the presentation will be made available on the Company's website from 7.30am on 6 December 2018.


The Solid Dri-Fit knit fabric wicks sweat away and helps keep you dry and comfortable. Spandex provides a better range of motion. Flat seams and thumbhole cuffs give you an enhanced fit with added comfort. Team USA shield featured on the left chest.


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The best blog 7764
The Ultimate Glossary of Terms About crokstore
Before the shoeswere sandals. But in a few areas, the footwear had been very first devised as opposed to the more comfy and lightweight sandals. All through the globe, there are artifacts and robust evidences that sandals had been present because human very first inhabited earth. These evidences were not merely found in the relics but may also be sighted from the similarities of terminology to connote a thing that is worn for feet masking. Take such as the Latin term sandalium, or maybe the French sandale and perhaps the Arabic andal. These seem to be joined by a typical notion of a sandal.
The range of sandal types nowadays attests to mans mastery around sandal creating and the use he has present in the item. In the following sections of this article, we will explore a few of the preferred sandal styles in the world. A lot of the styles described here will only be talked over Briefly because We'll make an effort to give attention to the types of sandals standard to Japanese society by yourself.
espadrille – is really a kind of sandal characterized with the rope sole or rubber sole using a cloth masking for its upper segment.
flip-flop – is Japanese in origin and is characterised by staying backless. This sandal is held over the foot by means of a thong concerning the next toe and the large toe.
Gladiator- named after the sandals worn by gladiators of your Roman arenas, straps which have been fixed towards the flat sole to hold the foot in place characterizes this sandal.
huarache or huaraches – is usually a Mexican sandal with flat heels and woven leather thongs for straps.
scuffer – is frequently worn as playshoes among youngsters and as sportshoe between Older people. Scuffers are frequently produced away from light-weight elements and so are characterised for their strong sole.
shoe – is really a footwear that's patterned to suit the foot. Generally, the higher is made of leather-based, plastic or rubber and the sole is manufactured out of A great deal heavier and sturdier material.
talaria – is regularly outlined in most Roman myths. This is a winged sandal worn by Hermes, a Roman god.
Zori or pusher – at first a Japanese, that is a sandal fabricated from rubber sole and two straps that are held on both facet which satisfies with the upper element amongst the big toe and the second finger.
Among these normal different types of sandals, the preferred kinds tend to be the zori, the huarache and also the gladiator.
Japanese sandals
The 3 of the basic Japanese sandals tend to be the geta, tatami as well as zori. Geta sandals tend to be more frequently identified amid Us residents as a consequence of the recognition of Geisha Females photos. There are actually styles of geta sandals but two of the greatest-known would be the vinyl and also the wood. The latter is worn in the course of everyday days whilst the vinyl geta is worn from time to time. Geta is named as such due to audio (click clack) they deliver when becoming walked.
The tatami sandals However are included in the everyday class. These are generally worn for normal times and day-to-day have on. The phrase tatami was derived from your Japanese term for More helpful hints straw. The tatami sandals are crafted from tatami, the identical substance used in building the mat flooring for standard Japanese houses. Customarily, the thong possibly is available in black or pink velvet.
For formal instances, zori sandals are worn. Together with these sandals appear tabi socks which can be split involving the massive toe and the second toe.
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The last week of Kaun Banega Crorepati 10 is going on. Amitabh Bachchan performed a special show in the Grand Finale episode. In which people connected with social services reached. On Friday, Comedian Kapil Sharma got a chance to sit on the hot seat. Kapil has come here with Ravi Kalra, the founder of "The Earth Saviours Foundation".
On the set of Kaun Banega Crorepati, Kapil Sharma came to promote his new show. There was also actor Chandan Prabhakar, who played with him the main character in the show. Chandan was sat in the audience gallery. After Kapil's entry, Amitabh Bachchan said, "I have heard that apart from the show, you are going to start another new one.
Amitabh Bachchan said, "You are going to do a brave work. I have heard that you are going to marry." On which Kapil Sharma said, "Sir, now cards are not printed. When the cards will be printed, I will definitely come to give you. Just tell the security person that let me in." Amitabh could not stop himself from laughing after listening to Kapil's words.
Kapil Sharma says, "Then this is what Mard Ko Dard Nahi Hota, Rishtey Main To Hum Tumhare Baap Lagte Hai… What was that you said. If this is the situation of the father then how will the children be?" Let's say that Kapil Sharma is going to marry his girlfriend Ginni Chatrath on December 12. There will be two receptions after marriage. On December 14 there will be a reception in Amritsar. The second reception will be held in Mumbai on December 24.


The Agomanya Islamic Junior high School in the Lower Manya Krobo Municipality in the Eastern Region received an ultra-modern three unit classroom block with auxiliary facilities to improve the standard of teaching and learning in the school.
The facility which was funded by the District Assembly Common Fund (DACF) was commissioned and handed over to the Municipal Education Directorate by the Municipal Chief Executive Simon Kwaku Tetteh is to help solve the classroom challenges facing the school for years.
This is the second classroom block project commissioned by the Municipal Assembly since reopening of school barely two weeks ago with Piengua Yokwenor M/A Primary benefiting a 6-unit classroom block about a week ago.
Addressing the short commissioning ceremony which was witnessed by high powered delegation from the security sector in the Lower Manya Krobo Municipality gracing the occasion the MCE expressed a heartfelt appreciation to the President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo Addo for giving him the opportunity to serve his homeland.
"I wish to express my heart felt appreciation to our hard working President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo Addo for giving me the opportunity to serve my Homeland under his transformational leadership" he stated.
The MCE noted that education is the backbone of ever community hence the need to prioritize education in the municipality, the government through the Municipal Assembly is poised to uplift the standard of education in the municipality by providing the necessary infrastructure and teaching and learning materials.
Simon Kwaku Tetteh cautioned the school authorities to take good care of the facility by adopting maintenance culture to ensure the long lasting of the facility advising teachers to make the relief of the new building motivate them to give their all to improve the educational standard of the Islamic school as he is committed to tackle the other classroom issues confronting other Islamic schools in the Municipality.
Mrs. Agnes Akweley Attipoe who represented the Lower Manya Krobo Municipal Education Director applauded the MCE for his great leadership after promising to make good use of the facility to achieve its intended purpose of impacting knowledge into the younger generation.
The Municipal Chief Iman, Yunusa Issah expressed his heart felt appreciation to the Hon. MCE for giving their Islamic School which had been left out the development agenda of past administration today experienced unique attention under his great leadership.
The newly completed edifice has 3 classrooms, headteachers office, store, and a big staff room for the teachers.
The delegation of dignitaries who toured the building after the commissioning were amazed at the size of the staff room as they applauded the Hon. MCE and his team of officers from the Municipal Assembly.


The Referrals Committee Justice Tony Hunt (in the Chair), Sean Barry and Robert Dore met at the Croke Park Hotel, Jones Road, Dublin 3 on Monday, 13th February 2017 to consider written submissions on costs following their decision on 27th January 2017 to disqualify Champoleon (FR) following his win in the Punchestown Events Maiden Hurdle at Punchestown on 16th May 2015 as a result of having tested positive for Caffeine.
In addition to considering the written submissions, the Committee also considered oral submissions from Louis Weston, Barrister on behalf of the Turf Club and Seamus Clarke BL on behalf of Noel Meade.
Following an adjournment, the Committee were informed that costs had been agreed between both parties and as such no further order was made.
The case was presented by Louis Weston, Barrister. Noel Meade was represented by Seamus Clarke BL, instructed by Patrick Ward, Frank Ward & Co. Solicitors, Dublin.


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Change on the Horizon: Kenya Revamps System for Enhanced Elections
Interview/Speech/Testimony
Africa, Kenya
Electoral Technology, Electoral Management
Following the 2007 general elections that resulted in political violence, Kenya has adopted a new constitution and made widespread modifications to its electoral system. Mike Yard, IFES Chief of Party in Kenya, provides insight into the changes that have taken place and the preparations that are underway ahead of the March 2013 elections.
A number of changes have taken place in Kenya since the 2007 election. Most prominently, a new constitution has been adopted and a new election commission has emerged. Could you give us a quick run-through of the major political and legal changes that will affect the upcoming elections?
The new constitution envisions a much broader democratic process that increases representation of women, youth, persons with disabilities and other underrepresented or marginalized groups. The constitution and subsequent laws and regulations give greater authority to the Independent Election and Boundaries Commission (IEBC). They also strengthen political party structures and impose ethical and educational requirements, as well as financial disclosure requirements for those who seek public office.
The law seeks to move Kenya to a political process that is less ethnic-based by requiring that a presidential candidate must get more than 50 percent of the vote in total and at least 25 percent of the vote in at least half of the nation's counties in order to be elected in a first-round poll.
Overall, the laws create greater dialogue between the political parties, civil society organizations and the election commission.
Further, the constitution envisions devolution of power from a central government to county and ward levels in an attempt to increase protections for communities and minorities. This devolution enhances separation of powers and makes services more readily available at local levels.
To a great extent, the democratic vision of the constitution is to redistribute power away from political elite who have increasingly controlled national resources and decision making. These visions are far-reaching, and reforms will not be completely realized by simply passing a constitution. It will take several election cycles to determine to what extent these goals can become reality.
This September, IFES awarded Maimuna Mwidau, a women's activist from Kenya, the 2012 Charles T. Manatt Democracy Award. Because of her efforts, and those of countless Kenyan women like her, the new Kenyan constitution requires no more than two-thirds of the Kenyan parliament be of the same gender. Do we know how this gender requirement will be fulfilled?
This is currently a controversial issue in Kenya, with many politicians and political parties claiming it is impossible to meet this requirement in this election cycle.
On December 12, the Supreme Court of Kenya ruled that, due to conflicting language in the constitution and in the absence of legislation to clarify how the quota would be fulfilled, the gender requirement imposed by the constitution cannot be implemented by 2013. But it will be fully imposed by August 2015. In a dissenting opinion, Chief Justice Willie Mutunga stated, "Parliament by its silence cannot deprive the women of this country the right to equal representation. In the event that Parliament fails to implement that principle any of the elected houses will be unconstitutional."
What is the voter registration process like for citizens under the new system? Will their photos and fingerprints be taken?
The IEBC decided to implement biometrics both for voter registration and for validation of voters on Election Day. The voter registration system allows the registrar to enter data on the voter and to capture both a photo and fingerprints from all 10 fingers. This data will be checked using an automated fingerprint identification system (AFIS) to detect any duplicates. The data will then be used on Election Day to validate each voter through the use of an electronic poll book. This provides several advantages. It acts as a deterrent against impersonation, and also provides the ability to track how many people voted at any point throughout the day. This data can then be used to help detect any attempt at ballot-box stuffing or overreporting of the number of votes cast. The data can be analyzed post-election to do demographic breakdowns of who voted, segmented by age and gender.
Given the delays in the procurement of the registration kits, will voter registration be completed on schedule?
At the time of this interview, the registration period has just ended, with 12.7 million voters registered out of a target of 18 million announced by IEBC.
Several factors have been cited for the low turnout up to this point. First is the human tendency to procrastinate. In every voter registration exercise there are a significant number of people who wait until the last minute to register, but in this case, there seems also to be a combination of apathy and antipathy about the upcoming elections. There has been pressure on the IEBC to extend the period of registration, but the election calendar is very tight, so extension is unlikely.
A big issue during the 2007 elections was the slow speed at which the results were transmitted from polling stations to the counting center. As a result, there has been a massive upgrade in the results transmission system and a commitment made to a new media center and results display for the upcoming election. Please tell us about these upgrades and take us through the steps that will occur once voting stations close on the evening of March 4.
IFES helped design a system in 2010 for the results transmission system for the constitutional referendum, the first election exercise since the post-election violence that resulted from the 2007 election. There was a lot of anxiety in the country that this could be a replay of those events if the Interim Independent Electoral Commission did not provide an efficient and transparent system for reporting results.
The system we designed used a Java application on mobile phones to transmit results directly from each polling station to a central server. As a result of this system the "No" side conceded before 11:00 p.m., and Kenyans slept peacefully knowing they had a new constitution.
This system has been updated and used in several by-elections since 2010, and in every case the losing candidates have accepted defeat, usually based on the electronically transmitted provisional results, and before the final results were certified.
In March 2013, Kenya will, for the first time, conduct six different elections in one day, with some having potentially up to 52 candidates. This creates new challenges for the systems to transmit results data and display that data in meaningful ways. IFES is working with IEBC on the results transmission system, which expands on what has been used in the referendum and by-elections. The key difference is that the system will be operated by a polling clerk while the votes are being counted, rather than waiting until the results forms have been completed.
We are also collaborating with the IEBC and Google on defining the visual display of the results.
How are political parties being engaged to help prevent situations that could incite violence?
The Political Parties Act provides for the establishment of Political Parties Liaison Committees at national and county levels, which meet regularly to provide input to IEBC and the Office of the Registrar of Political Parties. This allows the parties to address areas of dissatisfaction and seek consensus on how the election process will be conducted.
IFES has worked with both IEBC and the judiciary to establish mechanisms for timely resolution of election disputes, and we are working on a guide to the legal recourse that parties, candidates and voters will have available in case of any disputes over the process or results.
NDI has suggested bringing together key party leaders and candidates in a forum where we could focus on the legal means available to challenge any electoral process and inviting the candidates to sign a pledge that in case of any dispute they will only respond to such disputes by legal means. IFES supports this proposal, and if it goes forward, will provide assistance in training participants in legal election dispute resolution mechanisms.
There has been a lot of debate around diaspora voting. IFES has offered guidance on the strengths and weaknesses, as well as the logistics of providing out-of-country voting. What are the current plans for diaspora voting?
The constitution mandates that the IEBC will progressively enable voting for Kenyans who are out of the country. There have been strong demands made by members of the Kenyan diaspora that they be allowed to vote in the 2013 elections. In November, the Minister of Justice announced there would be no voting by Kenyans outside the country. The IEBC quickly refuted that announcement, asserting that the IEBC is the only body with authority to make any decision related to elections. However, at that time, they also announced that they would only be able to implement voting by Kenyans living in East Africa, specifically in Uganda, Tanzania, Rwanda and Burundi. Even this may prove difficult, as issues have been raised about security costs and registration in these countries. Registration that was originally announced to begin on December 10 has been delayed.
How is the population being informed of all the changes that are taking place, including that, for the first time ever, Kenyans might vote in a run-off election?
Election planning in 2011-12 has had three major phases: boundary delimitation, voter registration and conduct of the actual elections. The bulk of voter education up to this point has focused on the first two of these phases. As voter registration concludes, the new focus is the election – how to vote, what offices are being elected and the issue of a run-off election.
Several innovative approaches are being taken to help inform Kenyans about the changes in the electoral process. Uongozi (Swahili word for leadership) is a reality-based TV show that pits 48 candidates, one from each of the 47 counties and one from the Kenyan diaspora, against each other in a mock political campaign that will culminate in a debate featuring the three finalists and a "run-off election."
Shujaaz FM is a multimedia program that started as a comic book about an unemployed Kenyan youth who starts an underground radio station broadcasting information on political and social issues, as well as voter education messages. His radio broadcasts are now being played on radio stations throughout Kenya. The fictitious main character, DJ Boyie, has over 20,000 followers on Facebook, and an SMS number allows Kenyan youth to send text messages to different characters in the series and get information on the election.
Technology is being adopted in almost every aspect of this election. In late 2013, will we be looking toward Kenya as a global model for the introduction of technology into the electoral process?
I hope not. Because of the aggressive schedule the IEBC has had to face, they have implemented many new technologies in a very short time frame in a way that should not be seen as a model for other election management bodies. There is still a significant risk of failure in many of these technologies. Whenever possible, new tools and processes should be introduced into elections in a more gradual approach that allows adequate time for careful planning, feasibility studies, pilot testing and implementation in smaller phases.
However, if Kenya succeeds with its technology initiatives, it will be an excellent case study for how technologies can be used to support elections, and will offer many lessons about how to proceed.
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