Science, Space and Technology News 2024
Researchers have mapped the brain’s dysfunctional circuits related to Parkinson’s, dystonia, OCD, and Tourette’s, uncovering targeted areas for effective deep brain stimulation treatments. This breakthrough not only advances DBS precision but also opens up possibilities for noninvasive neuromodulation methods. Credit: SciTechDaily.
Deep brain stimulation targets these kinds of malfunctional circuits and can be instrumental in alleviating symptoms in various areas. In this neurosurgical approach, small electrodes are implanted into precisely defined target brain areas. The electrodes then chronically emit weak electrical pulses to the surrounding tissue. The stimulation effects travel along neural pathways to more distant areas of the brain to unfold their full impact. But stimulation is not always successful.
This raised the question of how such a small nucleus, only about one centimeter long, could be an effective target for symptoms of such different brain dysfunctions. To investigate this question, the team analyzed data from 534 DBS electrodes implanted in 261 patients across the globe. Of this cohort, 70 patients were diagnosed with dystonia, 127 with Parkinson’s disease, 50 with OCD, and 14 with Tourette’s syndrome.
Using these results, they were able to identify specific brain circuits that had become dysfunctional in each of the four disorders. They were associated with the relevant regions of the frontal part of the brain that play an important role in motor functions, impulse control, and information processing.
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