Gamma Oscillations in the Hyperkinetic State Detected with Chronic Human Brain Recordings in Parkinson’s Disease
In this study we used a cool new device that lets us record electrical brain signals in Parkinson’s disease patients, and also delivers therapeutic electrical stimulation to help their symptoms (DBS, deep brain stimulation)! We recorded basal ganglia local field potentials (electrical brain signals from deep in the brain) and motor cortex electrocorticography (electrical brain signals from the surface of the brain – a part that controls movements). People have been able to record these signals before, but it was always in special circumstances, like in the hospital or operating room. Here the device is fully implanted so we can even record signals in the patient’s home! Pretty neat! Using this device we discovered brain signal that occurred when patients were experiencing dyskinesia, or involuntary movements, that occur because of their medications. Now that we know the signal, the next step is seeing if we can use this to customize stimulation, so that the stimulation can be adjusted to try to avoid these side effects. This is called “close loop DBS” and you can read more about it in another here: https://kids.frontiersin.org/article/10.3389/frym.2016.00010. We are currently testing this in our new experiment!
greenswann 