Dystonia treatment with deep brain stimulation (DBS)

The Deep Brain Stimulation (DBS) procedure is one of the most impressive achievements of neurosurgery for dystonia treatment. It helps where medications are powerless and returns a patient to his daily life even with severe dystonia signs. Neurosurgeons implant an electrode into the deep brain structures during the DBS procedure. The DBS device consists of a battery, electrodes, wires that connect the generator and electrodes, and a remote control for the patient. All parts, except the patient's console, are implantable. The surgery is performed under general anesthesia. First, a hair-thin wire passes through a small hole in the skull. Then, it connects to another wire that goes down to a small neurostimulator implanted under the collarbone. After the procedure, patients note significant improvements. It is because high-frequency electrical impulses constantly enter the brain. As a result, they change the neurons' activity and suppress impulses that cause involuntary movements in dystonia. A significant advantage of deep brain stimulation is the reversibility of the effect. In addition, the settings of the neurostimulator can be changed using the remote control. It is a device that looks like a mobile phone, with which you can control the parameters of your stimulation (within limits set by the doctor), turn on and off the entire system (for example, before an MRI examination), and switch between different programs.