Innovative Technologies Smooth Path for Parkinson’s Patients

There may be no cure for Parkinson’s disease to date, but we’ve certainly entered a new era of innovative treatments and technologies for diagnosing and treating this progressive neurological condition. These tools offer Parkinson’s patients the best chance to live and function more easily and comfortably, helping them thrive.

DaTscan 

An accurate diagnosis is crucial for determining the best treatment options. Since there is no single blood or imaging test available that can definitively detect Parkinson’s disease, DaTscan can help. Patients who have tremors might have Parkinsonian syndrome (a group of related diseases dominated by Parkinson’s) or another movement disorder called essential tremor. DaTscan can often distinguish between the two, especially when used in combination with a patient’s physical exam and reported symptoms.

Here’s how it works:

• DaTscan Injection: A dose of DaTscan is injected into the bloodstream.It travels to the brain and attaches to the dopamine transporters.
• Visualization of Dopamine Levels: A few hours later, a special camera is used to help doctors visualize brain levels of dopamine, a chemical in the brain that sends signals between nerves. Dopamine levels often decrease dramatically in people with Parkinson’s disease. 
• Diagnosis Confirmation: The scan can detect the drop in nerve cells and dopamine that characterize Parkinson’s, and help doctors confirm a diagnosis. 
  
  

HiFU (High-Intensity Focused Ultrasound or FUS)

Medications for Parkinson’s disease are always the first treatments offered. But sometimes drug therapies don’t work well enough to control tremors or leave patients with severe side effects. These patients may find relief from high-intensity focused ultrasound (HiFU), which uses sound waves to target areas in the brain responsible for tremors. Hackensack Meridian Health is the only network in New Jersey that offers HiFU: Hackensack University Medical Center currently offers HiFU, Jersey Shore University Medical Center will begin offering it in late summer 2023, and patients may be evaluated at JFK University Medical Center to see if they are a candidate.

Here’s how it works:

• MRI Imaging: While patients lie on an MRI table with the head secured in place, doctors use MRI images to guide the therapy. 
• Sound Waves: HiFU destroys those areas by aiming about 1,000 sources of ultrasound at those spots, raising the temperature of the tissue and short-circuiting tremor signals. 
• Instant Tremor Reduction: This incision-free form of surgery can instantly and dramatically reduce or stop tremors for patients with Parkinson’s disease as well as essential tremor.

When HiFU was first approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), patients could only have the procedure performed on one side of their brain, leaving them with tremors on the non treated side. But the FDA recently approved HiFU for use on the second side of the brain nine months after the first procedure, meaning Parkinson’s patients have the opportunity to eventually become tremor-free.

Deep Brain Stimulation

Deep brain stimulation (DBS) involves implanting a device that emits electrical impulses to control a variety of Parkinson’s motor symptoms, including tremors, stiffness, and slow movement. For patients that are eligible for DBS, it can help with symptoms that have become difficult to manage with medication alone and drug-related side effects. DBS can also be performed to help those with essential tremor, dystonia, and epilepsy.

Here’s how it works:

• Implantation: First, two thin metal wires are placed in the brain and an extension wire is threaded through the neck that leads to a battery implanted over the chest wall, all under the skin.
• Blocks Out Faulty Nerve Signals: When the neurostimulator device - often described as a pacemaker for the brain - is switched on after a 4-6 week healing period, tremors and other Parkinson’s symptoms are silenced by a type of “white noise” that interrupts faulty nerve signals.

DBS is the most commonly performed surgical treatment for Parkinson’s. Because they’re moving more easily, patients often report improvements in pain, mood, and sleep as well. Due to its success, DBS is also being researched for a variety of other conditions, including epilepsy, Tourette syndrome, Huntington’s disease, Alzheimer’s disease, addiction, depression, cluster headaches, and chronic pain.

Next Steps & Resources:

• To find a neurologist near you, call 800-822-8905 or visit our website.
• Learn more about treatment for Parkinson’s disease, essential tremor and other movement disorders.