I just wonder at the complications, deaths, disabling strokes, surgical complications that will happen to largely still functional healthy working people. Surgery is not without risk. There is absolutely no hard evidence that surgery is in any way protective. Surgery does not cure PD. It may alleviate the need to take some meds thereby reducing the occurrence of dyskinesia. Honestly how does zapping the brain with electricity stop the progression of PD. The answer is it does not or it would have already jumped glaringly out of the background.
Brain surgery that can kill you should not be a preventative therapy. This sounds like a vehicle used by docs who want to publish and hone their skill and or fill their pockets. Risk must be weighed against benefit. In many cases PD can ONLY BE DIAGNOSED with progression. If you don't allow time for progression in order to make the BEST diagnosis the odds that you do surgery on a perfectly healthy brain go up. I was told the same thing 13 years ago (GET SURGERY NOW-protect yourself). Not only did I not progress I was misdiagnosed. Thank goodness I didn't let them cut open my head.
13 years later the wording is still the same to the letter. It "may" protect you. Well Cheerios "may help" lower cholesterol too but they can't prove it so they can't say it DOES. I get that we are working for a cure but using people as guinea pigs is just wrong. If you allow someone that makes a living cutting brains to drive the train you'll end up with unnecessary surgery, unnecessary dead people, and unnecessary damage. There is not true impartiality in this instance. None of these docs are getting surgery themselves to ward off getting PD. When that happens I might think there is something to it.
Logically I cannot believe that electric stimulation could possibly stop cell death or processes in such a narrow, specific, and targeted way. It makes no sense and has no application of protection in medical literature for any condition. More likely it will affect the entire brain and body in ways nobody has imagined. There is no way to isolate or target just PD affected physiology.
It may protect but more likely it may do a million other things that nobody will understand until we place people's dead brains under microscopes. I have yet to see any research or support for this hypothesis that is solidly grounded in science. The longer we all wait the better the technology and procedures will be. Why jump on the rickety wagon now-wait for the bullet train.
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Originally Posted by Tupelo3
DBS as an early stage, first line treatment. It will be very interesting to follow the results of this study.
A long-term Vanderbilt University Medical Center study of deep brain stimulation (DBS) in early stage Parkinson’s disease has received approval from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to continue in a pivotal, phase III, large-scale safety and efficacy trial. Approximately 350 patients will be recruited at 15 academic medical centers in the U.S. and Europe for this Vanderbilt-led study.
“Our hypothesis is that patients who have DBS applied in the very early stage of Parkinson’s disease will do much better in quality of life and motor function and have delayed onset of disability and medication-associated complications. Expanding the trial will help test that hypothesis.”
“We believe strongly and have always been working from the controversial point of view that DBS and medication is better than medication alone,” Charles said.
With an estimated 50 percent of dopamine-producing cells already degenerated when a patient first shows symptoms, time is of the essence in applying any therapy that may slow the progression of Parkinson’s. "Half the cells you are trying to save are already gone the day you make the diagnosis. We stand behind early DBS because we believe the treatment could stave off the loss of more of those cells,” Charles said.
http://www.elkvalleytimes.com/?p=27809
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