“ Since the implant ... I can remember how much money is in my bank account . I wasn ’ t able to read , but after the implant I bought a book , Where the Crawdads Sing , and loved it and remembered it . And I don ’ t have that quick temper .
Brain Implants Revive Cognitive Abilities Long After Traumatic Brain Injury
“ Since the implant ... I can remember how much money is in my bank account . I wasn ’ t able to read , but after the implant I bought a book , Where the Crawdads Sing , and loved it and remembered it . And I don ’ t have that quick temper .
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In 2001 , Gina Arata was in her final semester of college , planning to apply to law school , when she suffered a traumatic brain injury in a car accident . The injury so compromised her ability to focus she struggled in a job sorting mail .
“ I couldn ’ t remember anything ,” said Arata , who lives in Modesto with her parents . “ My left foot dropped , so I ’ d trip over things all the time . I was always in car accidents . And I had no filter — I ’ d get pissed off really easily .”
Her parents learned about research being conducted at Stanford Medicine and reached out ; Arata was accepted as a participant . In 2018 , physicians surgically implanted a device deep inside her brain , then carefully calibrated the device ’ s electrical activity to stimulate the networks the injury had subdued .
She noticed the difference immediately : When she was asked to list items in the produce aisle of a grocery store , she could rattle off fruits and vegetables . Then a researcher turned the device off , and she couldn ’ t name any .
“ Since the implant I haven ’ t had any speeding tickets ,” Arata said . “ I don ’ t trip anymore . I can remember how much money is in my bank account . I wasn ’ t able to