Incision-less brain surgery has been approved by the Food and Drug Administration for advanced Parkinson’s patients following successful clinical studies at the University Of Virginia School Of Medicine and other sites.
Movement becomes impaired when Parkinson’s disease progresses. It usually starts with tremors in only one hand, sometimes barely noticeable at first. The disorder is often characterized by tremors, but the disorder can also lead to stiffness or slowness of movement.
Parkinson’s disease can cause a lack of facial expression in the early stages. You may not be able to swing your arms. You may slur your speech. Symptoms of Parkinson’s disease grow worse as your condition advances.
Sound Waves To Treat Common Parkinson’s Symptoms Is Approved By The FDA
A medication may significantly improve your symptoms, even though Parkinson’s disease cannot be cured. Your doctor may recommend surgery to regulate some brain regions and alleviate your symptoms.
Parkinson’s patients suffering from rigidity, involuntary movements, and mobility problems, known as dyskinesias, can now use Insightec’s Exablate Neuro focused ultrasound device for treatment.
According to a Charlottesville-based foundation, UVA’s pioneering research into the many potential applications of this technology makes it one of only 37 medical centers in the country equipped with this minimally invasive treatment.
Founder of focus ultrasound therapy and leader of UVA Health’s testing of focused ultrasound pallidotomy for treatment of Parkinson’s, Jeff Elias, MD, says this FDA approval of focused ultrasound pallidotomy could mean more treatment options for Parkinson’s patients.
However, it may offer a less invasive alternative for patients with medication-induced dyskinesia or severely impaired motor functions.
Focused ultrasound is powerful.
Elias was the first patient in a 10-year clinical trial to use focused ultrasound to treat essential tremor, a common movement disorder. The MRI-guided focused ultrasound procedure, which Binit Shah, MD, and Elias have developed since 2002, is now commercially available.
In 2013, UVA researchers developed technology that the Food and Drug Administration approved for treating essential tremors. The treatment, which has been expanded to treat rigidity and involuntary movements in Parkinson’s patients, will soon be approved by the FDA.
Focused Ultrasound Foundation chairman Neal F. Kassell, MD, praised the FDA’s decision. Providing focused ultrasound to the brain has been synonymous with the Foundation for decades, and this FDA ruling is a win for both doctors and patients alike, said Kassell, a former neurosurgeon at UVA.
Elias is also excited about the prospect of the approval having positive effects on Parkinson’s patients. Patients are interested in this ultrasound technology because it can be performed on an outpatient basis and without making any incisions,” he said.
Experience and technological advancement are needed to increase safety and effectiveness. This is a relatively new procedure.”
What’s Next in Medicine?
Insurance plans are unlikely to cover the approach immediately because it is newly approved. You can also visit UVA Health’s website to find out more about its cutting-edge focused ultrasound research.
It is Elias’ team’s goal to understand how the technology can improve a wide range of conditions, including cancer, epilepsy, and allow the brain’s natural protection so that new treatments can be developed.
Treatments such as glioblastoma, a deadly brain tumor, may be more effective with the ability to briefly penetrate the blood-brain barrier. Neurosurgeon Jason Sheehan, MD, Ph.D., has started a clinical trial at the University of Virginia to test a treatment for glioblastoma.
