Deep Brain Stimulation: Life-changing for Parkinson's Patients
For individuals suffering from Parkinson's disease, there are many treatment options available that can help alleviate their symptoms. As a clinical leader in the treatment of Parkinson's disease, LifeBridge Health can help patients reduce the intensity of their symptoms and reclaim some of the normalcy the disease may have taken from their lives. LifeBridge Health, through the Berman Brain and Spine Institute is proud to provide patients with a comprehensive Movement Disorders Program. The advanced care includes specialized neurologic care in Parkinson's Disease, physical and occupational therapy, neuropsychology, a Parkinson's support group, as well as surgical options.
One of the most prevalent treatment options for patients with Parkinson's Disease is Carbidopa-Levodopa, a medication which treats the symptoms of Parkinson's by replenishing the brain's supply of dopamine. While this medication is effective for many, it often comes with considerable side effects such as dyskinesia - impulsive, uncontrollable movements of the body. In these instances, patients can benefit greatly from an impressive procedure known as deep brain stimulation.
Dr. Molly Del Santo, director of the Comprehensive Movement Disorders Program at Sinai Hospital's Berman Brain and Spine Institute, explains that "Parkinson's disease is due to loss of dopamine brain cells, which leads to the abnormal movements."
When medications are not able to properly control symptoms, deep brain stimulation can provide relief. Deep brain stimulation involves inserting wires into the brain, much like a pacemaker for the brain. While deep brain stimulation doesn't treat all symptoms of Parkinson's, it can improve patients' overall quality of life by reducing the amount of medication they need to take, thereby increasing the therapeutic window of the medication and decreasing its adverse side effects. This can return some much-needed stability to the lives of patients who often experience what Dr. Zalatimo calls "a bit of a roller coaster with their symptoms and the side effects of the medications."
The procedure itself involves the surgical implantation of wires into specific parts of the patient's brain. These wires enter through the patient's skull and are connected to a battery. "We set the device to release an electric impulse at a certain frequency and pulse width and strength, amplitude, to interfere with the signals in that specific part of the brain," says Dr. Zalatimo. Once installed, the device is kept off for a few weeks to allow the patient's brain to recover from surgery. Upon activation, the device's effects are immediate - Dr. Zalatimo attests to seeing patients' tremors subside instantly as the device is tested in the operating room.
In the 20 years since it was first put into use, deep brain stimulation has drastically improved the lives of countless Parkinson's patients, allowing them to resume some of the ordinary activities, hobbies and passions that many of us take for granted. Dr. Zalatimo has been performing deep brain stimulator surgeries for 15 years and has witnessed firsthand the procedure's ability to restore much of the dignity robbed from patients by the disease. These improvements, he says, "can be life-changing."
To learn more about Parkinson's Disease and treatments at LifeBridge Health, click here.