Deep Brain Stimulation: An Evolving Technology

Deep brain stimulation (DBS) is widely used as a safe and effective medical treatment for certain neurological disorders. It continues to evolve with improving techniques in functional neurosurgery and biomedical device engineering. This paper provides an overview of the enabling science and technology that have allowed DBS to successfully treat certain neurological disorders. It also points toward some of the engineering advances that will enable DBS to yield a more predictable outcome for current indications and to be systematically developed as a treatment for new indications.

I. Introduction

Deep brain stimulation (DBS), following in the footsteps of cardiac pacemaker technology from the 1960s, is both in its formative stages and experiencing an exciting renaissance. the surgical concepts that were developed over the past century have potentially found new disease targets with dramatic benefits to certain patient populations. the discovery of the techniques and brain targets have been serendipitous, as the fundamental mechanism of the therapeutic effects of DBS remains unclear. Nonetheless, over the course of the past decade, more than 30 000 Parkinson's disease (PD) patients worldwide have benefited from DBS, as well as many patients with essential tremor (ET) and dystonia.