For the first time, researchers have implanted an electrode that can record neural activity while it simultaneously delivers electric current to the brain.
Minneapolis-based medical device company Medtronic developed the device, which can also adjust its electrical output in response to the changing conditions of the brain. This automated control could one day improve deep brain stimulation treatment and even enable doctors to use the device to treat more conditions, experts say.
More than 100,000 patients have received deep brain stimulation for treating movement problems associated with Parkinson's and other movement disorders. The treatment is also being explored for use with patients with epilepsy, severe depression and other brain disorders. The pacemaker-like devices deliver electric shocks to the brain to correct or prevent disruptive neuronal activity associated with symptoms of these conditions. With current devices, the pattern and strength of the electrical pulses must be preset by a specialist and then adjusted to meet a patient's needs. The new device from Medtronic and others currently in development could change that. Read more...
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