Clinical Correlates of Deep Brain Stimulation

Project Description Narrative:

This project will provide an opportunity for physicians and scientists at MCW to improve the health of patients by increasing their understanding of treatment side effects and developing new methods to treat deep brain stimulation (DBS) patients and prevent adverse neuropsychological outcomes. It will leverage the expertise and assets at MCW to promote discoveries that translate into improvements in health and quality of life for movement disorders patients. The researchers will use translational methods and interdisciplinary collaboration to examine a pertinent problem in neuroscience research, namely the treatment of Parkinson’s disease (PD) and the improvement of the mental health of this patient population. This has the potential to improve quality of life for these patients and alleviate some of the long-term costs of their treatment.

The results of this study will characterize the stimulating influence of DBS on a patient-specific basis, which will be important for increasing understanding of the effects of DBS. Understanding the effects of DBS will provide the foundational knowledge to improve this therapy for current and future applications of DBS technology. The results of this study will provide foundation for future collaborations that include theoretical and clinically oriented research.