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Overcoming Movement
and Neurological Disorders Life is difficult for people experiencing movement disorders and other symptoms associated with neurological conditions. Tremors, muscle stiffness, slowness of movement and pain affect every aspect of their daily routines. The Neurosciences Center at Froedtert & The Medical College of Wisconsin uses a multidisciplinary, collaborative approach to identify symptoms and determine the best treatment for each person.
To find the specific area in the brain that is generating disabling symptoms, Froedtert & the Medical College have made tremendous strides in using innovative neuro-imaging technology to identify the source of symptoms and target areas requiring stimulation.
While medications can help control symptoms, some patients experience an increasing loss of control of movement or excessive pain. For them, innovative surgical procedures can provide relief. Froedtert & the Medical College have one of only a few centers in the state providing restorative and deep brain stimulation (DBS) surgery.
Candidates for neurosurgical procedures include patients with a movement disorder that is not responding adequately to medication, including individuals experiencing symptoms associated with Parkinson’s disease, essential tremor, dystonia and other neurological disorders. Through these procedures, patients with disabling pain and movement disorders are better able to manage their symptoms and achieve more normal lives.
DBS surgery helps patients gain greater control over their body movements. This procedure involves surgically implanting a pacemaker-like device in the brain that delivers electrical stimulation to precisely targeted areas — blocking the signals that cause disabling motor symptoms.
For people with chronic pain syndromes, motor cortex stimulation implants can help to relieve symptoms. For those with depression that is not responding to current treatment regimens, vagus nerve stimulation implants can help. New applications of DBS and cortical stimulation for psychiatric and chronic pain syndromes are being investigated.
Following surgery, a multidisciplinary team offers comprehensive rehabilitation to help patients reduce their medications, become more functional and return to daily activities.
Source: Every Day Date: Aug - Dec 2006 |