Chest beating from Medtronic about deep brain stimulation and its applications:
>>New Research shows results, suggests Promise of Deep Brain Stimulation for Treatment of Parkinson's, Dystonia
Presentations at American Association of Neurological Surgeons Meeting in Toronto Highlight Future Applications of Implanted Medical Technology for Central Nervous System Disorders
TORONTO--(BW HealthWire)--April 23, 2001-- New research being presented here this week at the annual meeting of the American Association of Neurological Surgeons highlights the success and promise of deep brain stimulation for the treatment of central nervous system disorders.
Two French neurosurgeons will present results of their research on deep brain stimulation for the treatment of advanced Parkinson's disease and generalized dystonia in separate forums during the international meeting, which began Sunday and concludes Thursday at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre.
During the meeting's first plenary session today, Alim-Louis Benabid, M.D., Ph.D., chief of neurosurgery at the University of Grenoble, shared eight-year data with the entire congress on his use of deep brain stimulation to treat patients with advanced Parkinson's disease that could not be controlled adequately with oral medications. Professor Benabid's study represents the longest follow-up of patients being treated for Parkinson's with deep brain stimulation in the world.
During a scientific session on Wed., April 25, Philippe Coubes, M.D., chief of pediatric and functional neurosurgery at Guide Chauliac Surgical Medical Center in Montpellier, will explain his clinical experience with deep brain stimulation as a treatment for generalized dystonia, a debilitating movement disorder that causes involuntary and sometimes painful muscle contractions and spasms.
``These two studies represent a large series in the application of deep brain stimulation to treat patients with either Parkinson's disease or dystonia,'' said Andres Lozano, M.D., a neurosurgeon at Toronto Western Hospital who also teaches at the University of Toronto. ``And because the series are large and because the follow-up is long-term, they represent very significant contributions to the field of movement disorders surgery.''
Parkinson's Disease
More than one million people in North America have Parkinson's disease, which causes rigidity, slow movements, tremor and poor balance. Oral medications can control the symptoms for several years but eventually lose their effectiveness and start to cause undesirable side effects, such as dyskinesia (involuntary, uncontrollable movements).
``Deep brain stimulation is a major tool in the panel of therapies we have at the moment for this disease,'' said Prof. Benabid, who performed the first implant of a deep brain stimulation system as part of a clinical study in 1987.
Dr. Lozano, who served as a discussant for Prof. Benabid's presentation, put the research in perspective: ``This study represents an important advance in the treatment of Parkinson's disease because it shows that patients with advanced Parkinson's disease can be treated with deep brain stimulation, that it provides substantial benefit to their Parkinson's disease symptoms, and that over the long-term these benefits can be maintained.''
Deep brain stimulation for the treatment of Parkinson's disease is investigational in the United States, where it is under review by the Food and Drug Administration. The therapy has been approved and commercially available in Canada, Europe and Australia since 1998.
Dystonia
More than 300,000 people in North America have dystonia, and many are children. The few available oral medications for the treatment of generalized dystonia, the most disabling form of the disease, rarely control the symptoms adequately.
``We know that this form of dystonia will evolve, that the child will be severely handicapped, and we have to treat it early,'' explained Prof. Coubes, who has treated more than 55 dystonia patients with deep brain stimulation -- the largest single-center experience in the world. ``We also know that generalized dystonia responds very poorly to medical therapy.''
Treatment of generalized dystonia with deep brain stimulation shows promise, according to Prof. Coubes, who will be presenting results of his study of 23 patients at the AANS meeting. ``We have excellent results . . . with four to five years of follow-up,'' he said.
Deep brain stimulation for the treatment of dystonia is investigational worldwide.
Frontiers of DBS
Medtronic, Inc. (NYSE:MDT - news), pioneered deep brain stimulation technology with Prof. Benabid and other physicians and scientists starting in the 1980s. It remains the only company in the world that offers it.
``Revolutionary change is underway in neuroscience, and Medtronic is at the forefront of this revolution with innovative medical technologies that target some of the most debilitating diseases of our time,'' explained Scott Ward, President of Medtronic Neurological. ``Medtronic's implantable neurostimulation and drug delivery systems are used to treat an array of neurological disorders by modulating the central nervous system with electrical stimulation and the administration of medications delivered in precise amounts to specific sites in the brain and spinal cord. Our technology in this area holds the real potential to improve the health of millions of patients with chronic illnesses.''
Medtronic's deep brain stimulation technology delivers a treatment called Activa® Therapy, which has been used to treat more than 10,000 patients with advanced Parkinson's disease and Essential Tremor worldwide since 1995.
``In the future, deep brain stimulation could be applied for the treatment of other neurological disorders, other than movement disorders,'' Dr. Lozano said. ``For example, it could be applied for the treatment of epilepsy, pain, or even psychiatric disease. What we're looking at here is really the beginning of a new era where we will be able to apply deep brain stimulation to selectively influence brain function.''<<
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Cheers, Tuck |
