Suffering from epilepsy? You may want to turn off your Sean Paul soundtrack.Stacey Gayle, a customer service employee at a bank in Alberta, Canada, suffered from a rare condition known as musicogenic epilepsy. The 25-year old noticed that every time she heard Sean Paul's reggae and hip-hop music she would subsequently experience a series of seizures!
They say all press is good press, but if your music causes your fans/customers to have seizures...you may want to switch genres or careers.
Luckily for Stacey (and Seanie), a team of surgeons at the Long Island medical center, through two surgeries, were able to cure her. Stacey has not experienced a seizure since...but has she listened to Sean Paul? I say she should try him again, he's good (and Jamaican!).
Source: NY Post, The Associated Press
More on Musicogenic epilepsy
Seizures triggered by music
Musicogenic epilepsy is characterized by seizures induced by hearing certain sounds, typically music (Critchley, 1977). Seizures have also been reported while the subject is exposed to the musical trigger during sleep or while merely thinking about it. The effective stimulus can be stereotyped for each patient and at times is exquisitely specific, but with no clear common pattern between patients. An affective component of the stimulus is evident in some patients, yet nonmusical sounds, such as whirring machinery, can be effective triggers in others. The seizures are of simple or complex partial type, with interictal and ictal epileptiform activity recorded from either temporal region (Scott, 1977), usually the right. Most patients also have spontaneous seizures and reflex seizures often begin over a year after the onset of spontaneous attacks (Wieser, 1997).
Musicogenic epilepsy is characterized by seizures induced by hearing certain sounds, typically music (Critchley, 1977). Seizures have also been reported while the subject is exposed to the musical trigger during sleep or while merely thinking about it. The effective stimulus can be stereotyped for each patient and at times is exquisitely specific, but with no clear common pattern between patients. An affective component of the stimulus is evident in some patients, yet nonmusical sounds, such as whirring machinery, can be effective triggers in others. The seizures are of simple or complex partial type, with interictal and ictal epileptiform activity recorded from either temporal region (Scott, 1977), usually the right. Most patients also have spontaneous seizures and reflex seizures often begin over a year after the onset of spontaneous attacks (Wieser, 1997).
Source: International League against epilepsy
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2 comments:
I watched a clip to the said article. It is amazing to be enlightened about the different reactions our bodies can have to certain stimuli. Thank God the neurologists were able to assess her condition and safely perform surgery. I thank God for doctors and their gift of healing.
On the light side...I wonder what Sean Paul thoughts are towards the effect of his music!!??
I thought the news item was very interesting. For the cause to be narrowed down to music, then to a specific genre, then to a specific musician?! Wow. That's unique. I am glad she is OK - who could imagine a life without Sean Paul? ;)
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