Enabling personalized adaptive
deep brain stimulation

Movement-related symptoms in Parkinson’s disease (PD) and other neurological conditions arise from irregular electrical signals in the brain regions responsible for motor control. Deep brain stimulation (DBS), approved since 1997 by the FDA presents a transformative treatment option for PD patients as medications lose efficacy and side-effects from symptom fluctuations increase.

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By combining brain-implanted electrodes with a pacemaker-like device implanted under the skin of the upper chest, patients often achieve remarkable symptom relief.

Although approved for over 30 years the current DBS therapy still lacks automatic adaptability to states such as sleep, specific symptoms such as bradykinesia, or side-effects such as hyperkinesia. This can lead to challenges for patients and their quality of life, as the constant level of stimulation doesn't match symptom volatility.

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Next generation adaptive DBS therapy, in which stimulation strength adjusts automatically to symptoms, promises to solve these problems.