Deep Brain Stimulation

Deep brain stimulation (DBS) is a surgical treatment involving the implantation of a medical device called a brain pacemaker, which sends electrical impulses to specific parts of the brain. DBS in select brain regions has provided remarkable therapeutic benefits for otherwise treatment-resistant movement and affective disorders such as chronic pain, Parkinson’s disease, tremor and dystonia.

(Dystonia is a neurological movement disorder in which sustained muscle contractions cause twisting and repetitive movements or abnormal postures.) Deep brain stimulation has been used experimentally in treating a few patients with severe Tourette syndrome. In August 2007, Nature reported that scientists in the US had stimulated a 38-year-old man who had been in a minimally conscious state for six years using DBS. The patient initially had increased arousal and sustained eye-opening, as well as rapid bilateral head-turning to voice. After further stimulation, the previously non-verbal patient became capable of naming objects and using objects with his hands—for example, bringing a cup to his mouth. Moreover, he could swallow food and take meals by mouth, meaning he was no longer dependent on a gastrostomy tube. DBS has been used in the treatment of obsessive-compulsive disorderand phantom limb pain.