DBS on Parkinson’s
DiseaseBy: Christopher Ross DeSantoBME 181 / February 11, 2010
What is Parkinson’s Disease ?
Parkinson’s Disease
•Neuro-degenerative Disorder
•Dopamine Deficiency
•Causes emotional and physical complications
• Affects Substantia Nigra
Physiology
of
Parkinson’s
Current Treatments of Parkinson’s
• No cure for Parkinson’s
• Most Parkinson’s patients are on a drug regimen
• Parkinson’s Disease medication target symptoms only
• No medication ensures life-long stability
• Most common drug today is Levodopa
• Levodopa is converted into dopamine
• Does not produce dopamine receptive cells
• Does not stimulate cells to take in dopamine
• DBS is an alternative to Levodopa
Deep Brain Stimulation
What is DBS?
• A Deep Brain Stimulator is a device called a brain pace maker that is implanted into the brain.
• Connected to an IPG (implanted pulse generator)
• Sends electric pulses to the brain that stimulate dopamine production
• Placed on the VIM of the brain
DBS
• A reversible procedure
•Requires skull penetration
•Nodes placed directly on brain (lead)
• Lead carries the charge
Statistics• 80% of patients experience little to
no tremors after DBS use
• For some patients medication is still needed but for all it reduces dosage needed
• DBS has been reported to work for 4 to 6 years.
• Everyone responds differently
• Known to cause loss of feeling in face or limbs
How DBS Came To Be
•Cures for Parkinson’s began in 1909
• Involved dangerous lesions to the brain (lobotomies)
• 1947 created Stereo- encephalotome
• Placed electric nodes over VIM section of brain
• VIM still utilized today against Parkinson’s with DBS
Modern DBS Technology
•New technology being made yearly
• Recently: RLS treatments
• Sleep Disorder cure
• Significant data has been found that it works better with those acute/ severe symptoms
Modern Applications of DBS
Where I see DBS going ...
Questions?