Woman plays flute during open brain surgery

A patient has managed to play the flute for doctors while undergoing major brain surgery at a Texas hospital, according to The Independent.

Anna Henry, a professional flute musician, was wide awake when doctors operated in a bid to stop hand tremors which are threatening to wreck her career.



The musician suffers from a hereditary condition that causes hand tremors, which can affect her ability to play the flute.

“I can fight it, but I’m tired of doing it. And it is getting worse. I know it’s a matter of either admitting I can’t do it anymore, or doing this so that I can,” Anna said.

PHOTO COURTESY: DAILYMAIL

“You know what you can do, and you know what you feel, and you just can’t make your body do it anymore, and that’s really frustrating,” she added.

Doctors operated a deep brain stimulation procedure, which includes planting electrodes, in order to reduce the tremors. This was done to keep Henry awake so that the doctors can figure out if the electrodes were working or not.

She played the flute mid-surgery to test her abilities.

During the video, Henry can be seen using the instrument without any visible shaking, while doctors and nurses applaud once she finishes.

PHOTO COURTESY: DAILYMAIL

“It’s a way that we can really improve a patient’s life and their quality of life, where otherwise they’re going to be on medications that may just have a very modest effect on improving their tremor,” Albert Fenoy, neurosurgeon at the Mischer Neuroscience Institute at Memorial Hermann.

PHOTO COURTESY: DAILYMAIL



Such brain stimulation that practice Henry suffered is often used to treat people with Parkinson's Disease.

This article originally appeared on The Independent.