New algorithm enhances deep brain stimulation for Parkinson's by targeting specific symptoms

Jun 8 2024Mass General Brigham

“There is already strong evidence of improved quality of life for PD patients treated with DBS, but currently we still use a ‘one-size-fits-all’ approach to treatment,” said senior author Andreas Horn, MD, PhD, a Mass General Brigham neurologist who holds titles at the Center for Brain Circuit Therapeutics in the Department of Neurology at Brigham and Women’s Hospital and the Center for Neurotechnology and Neurorecovery at Massachusetts General Hospital.

Axial symptoms, which have not received extensive study in relation to DBS, improved with stimulation of tracts connected to the supplementary motor cortex and brainstem. This finding may be especially important given that axial symptoms, such as gait or postural stability problems, typically do not respond well to DBS and existing dopaminergic therapies, such as levodopa.

The researchers are continuing to refine personalized, symptom-specific treatment for PD and other diseases, such as OCD, in partnership with Mass General Brigham researchers awarded major National Institutes of Health funding to map the brain’s circuitry more completely using advanced imaging technologies.

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