At just three months old, Jackson Williamson’s parents were faced with a devastating reality when their seemingly healthy infant began experiencing frequent seizures. What started as a routine visit to the emergency room in Bend, Oregon, quickly turned into a harrowing medical ordeal that led Jackson to undergo a rare and life-altering brain surgery.
The Start of a Medical Emergency
On June 18, 2024, Jackson's mother, Kaitlyn Williamson, took him to the hospital after noticing that something was wrong.
Initially, she suspected it might be a common illness. "Going into the emergency room, really just thinking it was maybe a bad cold or something was hard enough — and then to realize that it was seizures. It was just really scary — a lot of unknowns," she told KTVZ.
Upon arrival, doctors attempted to control Jackson’s seizures with medication, but nothing seemed to work. His condition worsened, and the seizures became relentless, happening up to 200 times a day.
Jackson was soon transferred to Doernbecher Children’s Hospital in Portland for more advanced care.
A Rare Diagnosis: Hemispheric Megalencephaly and Heterotopia
After a series of tests, doctors diagnosed Jackson with two rare conditions: hemispheric megalencephaly and heterotopia. Hemispheric megalencephaly is a disorder in which one side of the brain becomes abnormally enlarged, while heterotopia refers to abnormal clusters of grey matter and cysts in the brain.
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