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Revolutionary deep brain stimulation: new hope against stuttering!
Scientists at the University of Frankfurt are using deep brain stimulation to treat stuttering. Results and research perspectives.
Revolutionary deep brain stimulation: new hope against stuttering!
Deep brain stimulation (DBS) research is making significant progress in the treatment of various neurodegenerative diseases. There are increasingly promising prospects, particularly in the treatment of diseases such as Parkinson's disease and stuttering. So reported puk.uni-frankfurt.de that a team led by Christian Kell from the University Medical Center Frankfurt and Nils Warneke and Katrin Neumann from the University Hospital of Münster have successfully used the method to alleviate stuttering. The intervention focuses on electrical stimulation of the left thalamus, which has contributed to a significant reduction in stuttering frequency.
The results are promising: after stimulation, the frequency of stuttering decreased by 46%, and the severity of symptoms also decreased. These advances are remarkable, especially since psychological causes of stuttering were suspected 30 years ago. Today we know that genetic factors and different brain structures also play a role. In people who stutter, the auditory cortex in the left hemisphere of the brain interacts less with the motor cortex, which is thought to be the cause of stuttering.
Research on DBS in Parkinson's disease
Diversity in the use of deep brain stimulation is also evident in the treatment of Parkinson's disease. charite.de reports current studies dealing with the motor and cognitive effects of DBS. Interestingly, the results show that undesirable cognitive side effects are transmitted via different neural pathways than the positive motor effects. DBS therefore proves to be an effective treatment alternative for patients who do not respond adequately to drug treatment.
The target structure of DBS is the subthalamic nucleus, which is responsible not only for movement sequences but also for cognitive processes. Researchers at the Department of Neurology on the Charité Mitte campus have carried out behavioral and imaging experiments that are intended to help optimize therapies and improve patients' quality of life. Using nerve activity measurements, the scientists want to identify disease-specific patterns and individualize therapy.
Latest developments in brain stimulation research
A Charité research team provides additional insights into the effects of dopamine and its imitation by DBS. Loud charite.de the team uses machine learning to analyze brain signals from the sensorimotor cortex. These findings are important for the development of intelligent brain-computer interfaces that could accelerate communication between brain and muscles.
Studies with 25 Parkinson's patients who underwent deep brain stimulation showed that DBS can mimic the function of dopamine in the brain. This is proving revolutionary for treating symptoms such as akinesia, where patients have difficulty initiating movements voluntarily.
Overall, deep brain stimulation research offers promising approaches to improving treatment options for stuttering and Parkinson's disease. However, given the complexity of the diseases, it remains to be seen how these approaches can be implemented in clinical practice.