We use cookies to understand how you use our site and to improve your experience. This includes personalizing content and advertising. To learn more, click here. By continuing to use our site, you accept our use of cookies. Cookie Policy.

Features Partner Sites Information LinkXpress
Sign In
Advertise with Us

Medtronic

Medtronic offers medical products and therapies for the treatment of cardiac and vascular diseases, diabetes, and neu... read more Featured Products: More products

Download Mobile App




DBS Implant Treats Medically-Refractory Epilepsy

By HospiMedica International staff writers
Posted on 04 Mar 2019
Print article
Image: The Activa PC+S DBS System (Photo courtesy of Medtronic).
Image: The Activa PC+S DBS System (Photo courtesy of Medtronic).
Delivering controlled electrical pulses to the anterior nucleus of the thalamus (ANT) can reduce the frequency of epileptic seizures in people who are resistant to antiepileptic medication.

The Medtronic (Dublin, Ireland) DBS Therapy system is designed to deliver ANT stimulation as an adjunctive therapy to adults 18 years of age or older who are diagnosed with epilepsy that is characterized by partial-onset seizures, with or without secondary generalization, and that are refractory to three or more antiepileptic medications. Other indications, besides epilepsy, include essential tremor, recent and longer-standing Parkinson's disease (PD), chronic intractable primary dystonia, and severe, treatment-resistant obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD).

The system is based on the Activa PC+S neurostimulator, delivering bilateral DBS therapy while sensing and recording electrical activity using an adjustable algorithm that enables it to gather brain signals at various selected moments. The surgically implanted device can be programmed and adjusted non-invasively so as to maximize symptom control and minimize side effects. The system is designed for patients who average six or more seizures per month over the three most recent months (with no more than 30 days between seizures), but has not been evaluated in patients with less frequent seizures.

“DBS provides an important surgical treatment option for patients who suffer from epilepsy and do not respond to medication; it has been shown to significantly reduce the frequency and severity of seizures and improve quality of life out to seven years,” said neurosurgeon Professor Robert Gross, MD, PhD, of Emory University. “The first patient implanted since commercialization is doing very well. While it has only been two months since the system was turned on, his frequency of seizures has declined by more than 50%, and we expect improvement to increase further with additional programming sessions.”

DBS involves the implantation of a “brain pacemaker,” which sends electrical impulses to select brain regions to provide therapeutic benefits for treatment-resistant movement and affective disorders such as chronic pain, Parkinson's disease, tremor, and dystonia. Despite the long history of DBS, its underlying principles and mechanisms are still not clear. DBS directly changes brain activity in a controlled manner, its effects are reversible (unlike those of lesioning techniques) and is one of only a few neurosurgical methods that allows blinded studies.

Gold Member
Disposable Protective Suit For Medical Use
Disposable Protective Suit For Medical Use
Gold Member
STI Test
Vivalytic Sexually Transmitted Infection (STI) Array
Silver Member
Compact 14-Day Uninterrupted Holter ECG
NR-314P
New
Vital Signs Monitor
Aurus 10

Print article

Channels

Critical Care

view channel
Image: The permeable wearable electronics developed for long-term biosignal monitoring (Photo courtesy of CityUHK)

Super Permeable Wearable Electronics Enable Long-Term Biosignal Monitoring

Wearable electronics have become integral to enhancing health and fitness by offering continuous tracking of physiological signals over extended periods. This monitoring is crucial for understanding an... Read more

Patient Care

view channel
Image: The newly-launched solution can transform operating room scheduling and boost utilization rates (Photo courtesy of Fujitsu)

Surgical Capacity Optimization Solution Helps Hospitals Boost OR Utilization

An innovative solution has the capability to transform surgical capacity utilization by targeting the root cause of surgical block time inefficiencies. Fujitsu Limited’s (Tokyo, Japan) Surgical Capacity... Read more

Health IT

view channel
Image: First ever institution-specific model provides significant performance advantage over current population-derived models (Photo courtesy of Mount Sinai)

Machine Learning Model Improves Mortality Risk Prediction for Cardiac Surgery Patients

Machine learning algorithms have been deployed to create predictive models in various medical fields, with some demonstrating improved outcomes compared to their standard-of-care counterparts.... Read more

Point of Care

view channel
Image: The PATHFAST hs-cTnI-II high-sensitivity troponin assay has been developed for the PATHFAST Biomarker Analyzer (Photo courtesy of Polymedco)

POC Myocardial Infarction Test Delivers Results in 17 Minutes

Chest pain is the second leading cause of emergency department (ED) visits by adults in the United States, generating over 7 million visits annually. In the event of a suspected heart attack, physicians... Read more
Copyright © 2000-2024 Globetech Media. All rights reserved.