A patient in France who spent 15 years in a vegetative state from a car accident in 2001 successfully regain consciousness after the surgeons stimulated his vagus nerve, a nerve that sends signals from the brain to any other organs and is responsible for blood pressure maintenance, mood regulation, drowsy-inducing from eating too much and also plays a role in alertness and wakefulness.

The medical term of the patient's condition is Unresponsive Wakefulness Syndrome (UWS). It is like a coma but instead of being asleep and unresponsive, he or she is awake and unresponsive. Though their body functions normally, the neurons in their brain are not communicating anymore, making them unaware of their surroundings. Sometimes, the patient can gain awareness when the brain successfully fixes itself but if a person is still in UWS in a year or so, there is a small chance of recovering.

But more research is needed to confirm the reliability and consistency of vagal nerve stimulation in curing UWS.