About Medtronic Deep Brain Stimulation Therapy

Medtronic DBS Therapy may help you achieve more daily victories and feel more in control.

What is Medtronic DBS Therapy?

Medtronic DBS Therapy is an FDA-approved treatment that has been proven to reduce some of the symptoms of Parkinson's disease. More than 75,000 people worldwide have received Medtronic DBS Therapy over the past 20 years.

DBS Therapy uses an implanted medical device, similar to a pacemaker, to send mild electrical signals to an area in the brain that controls movement. These signals block some of the brain messages that cause disabling motor symptoms. As a result, you may experience greater control over your body movements.

Does DBS Therapy Treat More Than Just Tremors?

DBS Therapy can reduce several motor symptoms associated with PD:

• Rigidity – stiffness or inflexibility of the limbs or joints
• Bradykinesia/akinesia – slowness of movement/absence of movement
• Tremor – involuntary, rhythmic shaking of a limb, the head, or the entire body

How Long Has Deep Brain Stimulation Been Around?

Medtronic developed deep brain stimulation technology in the 1980s alongside leading physician researchers. In 1987, professors Alim-Louis Benabid and Pierre Pollak of the University of Grenoble in France published the results of the first application of DBS for the treatment of movement disorders.

Medtronic DBS Therapy for Parkinson's Control was approved in the United States in 2002. It has been available in Canada, Europe, and Australia since 1998.

What Are the Benefits of DBS Therapy?

Medtronic DBS Therapy has been proven to reduce some of the symptoms associated with PD. It may help you experience greater control over your body movements.

Effective

When used in combination with medications, Medtronic DBS Therapy may improve your symptoms of Parkinson's disease by increasing your "on" time without dyskinesias as much as 5 hours per day.¹

In one study, Medtronic DBS Therapy was shown to increase periods of good mobility (no symptoms or involuntary excessive movements) from 27% to 74% in the waking day of patients.²

Long-lasting

In another important study, Medtronic DBS Therapy was shown to maintain motor symptom improvements even after 5 years.³

Adjustable

Medtronic DBS Therapy stimulation settings can be adjusted in response to your PD symptoms.

Reversible

The Medtronic DBS Therapy system can be turned off or removed.

Medtronic DBS Therapy helps control symptoms, but it's not a cure. Your symptoms will return when the system is turned off.

Medications Alone	Medtronic DBS Therapy + Medications
0 hours of additional "on" time1	Average 5.1 hours additional "on" time without dyskinesias
Unpredictable motor fluctuations	More predictable motor fluctuations
Dyskinesias and non-motor side effects	Medication reduction may lead to fewer drug-induced side effects

What Are the Potential Side Effects and Risks of DBS Therapy?

DBS Therapy requires brain surgery. Risks of brain surgery may include serious complications such as coma, bleeding inside the brain, seizures and infection. Some of these may be fatal. Once implanted, the system may become infected, parts may wear through your skin, and the lead or lead/extension connector may move. Medtronic DBS Therapy could stop suddenly because of mechanical or electrical problems. Any of these situations may require additional surgery or cause your symptoms to return.

Medtronic DBS Therapy may cause worsening of some motor symptoms associated with your movement disorder, and may cause speech and language impairments. Stimulation parameters may be adjusted to minimize side effects and attain maximum symptom control. In patients receiving Medtronic DBS Therapy, depression, suicidal thoughts and suicide have been reported. Occurence of "fall" has also been reported in patients with Parkinson's disease.

Talk to your doctor about the risks that may be applicable to your specific situation.

Next: How It Works

References

1. Activa Therapy Clinical Summary, 2009.
2. The Deep-Brain Stimulation for Parkinson's Disease Study Group. Deep-brain stimulation of the subthalamic nucleus or the pars interna of the globus pallidus in Parkinson's disease. N Engl J Med. September 2001;345(31):956-963.
3. Krack P, Batir A, Van Blercom N, et al. Five-year follow-up of bilateral stimulation of subthalamic nucleus in advanced Parkinson's disease. N Engl J Med. November 2003;349(20):1925-1933.