A hospital in the United Kingdom is testing a brain implant to treat Parkinson's disease.
A hospital
in the United Kingdom is the first in the world to implant a brain gadget to
correct Parkinson's symptoms, and one of the test patients describes it as
"wonderful." A small deep brain stimulation (DBS) device is being
implanted into the skull by surgeons at Southmead Hospital in Bristol, England.
It
compensates for Parkinson's disease's aberrant brain-cell firing patterns.
Twenty-five
patients have been chosen to participate in the North Bristol NHS Trust
experiment, which will run until next year. If the experiment is successful,
more Parkinson's sufferers will be able to be treated more simply. Tony
Howells, who was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease nine years ago and was the
trial's first patient, described the effect as "wonderful."
"Before
the procedure, I went on a stroll with my wife on Boxing Day and we got 200
yards from the real automobile," Howells, who acquired his gadget in
November, said.
I had to
turn around and return because I couldn't walk any farther.
"I went
back on Boxing Day following the procedure, which was a year later, and we
walked for 2.5 miles and could've gone much farther."
"It was
incredible."
Parkinson's
disease causes gradual deterioration to areas of the brain over time and
presently has no treatment. Involuntary tremors, delayed movement, lack of
natural movement, and tight and inflexible muscles are some of the symptoms. The
majority of individuals acquire symptoms after they are 50, although around 5%
of those who suffer from it do so before they turn 40.
Traditional
Parkinson's surgery entails implanting a huge battery in the chest with wires
running under the skin all the way to the top of the head. The new DBS system
uses a tiny battery system for the device that is implanted into the skull,
making it the smallest ever constructed.
The gadget
sends electrical impulses straight to certain parts of the brain.
Electric
probes are inserted into the subthalamic nuclei via the skull to accomplish
this (an area deep in the centre of the brain that is critical in regulating
movement).
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The new
process takes just three hours, which is roughly half the time it took with the
bigger battery. "We are thrilled with how this first case went in the
operating theatre and with how the patient's symptoms have improved over the
past year," said Dr. Alan Whone, a consultant neurologist at North Bristol
NHS Trust, who is overseeing the experiment.
"If
these results hold up, we will have a substantial technological improvement by
which to enhance Parkinson's care over the globe," says the researcher.
"You
can't grasp how irritating [Parkinson's] is unless it occurs to you,"
Howells added.
"The
most hardest thing to accept is the slowing down of everyday chores, such as
tying shoelaces, which now takes three or four minutes rather than seconds. It
has a significant impact on your day-to-day existence." Howells is now
able to play golf again, much to his joy, and feels DBS is a "wonderful
way to give people their life back."
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