ABSTRACT

INTRODUCTION Parkinson’s disease (PD) treatment has undergone a dramatic change in the last decade, as the technology of deep brain stimulation (DBS) therapy has become an accepted part of the armamentarium. Surgical procedures, both ablative and neural stimulation, have been demonstrated to recapitulate the effects of best medical therapy while simultaneously reducing dyskinesia and the dosage of required medication. The number of PD patients treated with DBS in the last decade approaches 30,000. The ultimate goal of new therapies is to reverse the underlying pathophysiology of PD and restore function to the extrapyramidal motor system.