• The medicines most commonly used to manage Parkinson’s disease attempt to either replace or mimic dopamine, which hopefully alleviates the tremors, rigidity and slowness associated with the disease.1

  • Deep brain stimulation (DBS), a new surgical option for patients with Parkinson’s disease, uses precisely located implantable electrodes within the brain to deliver electrical impulses to counteract the tremors. The electrodes are connected to a neurostimulator, or “pacemaker,” which is implanted under the patient’s collarbone.
Parkinson’s Disease2 & DBS Facts
People with the disease 1.5 million
New cases per year 60,000
Percent with the disease who are <65 15%
Annual toll in lost productivity and disability costs $25 billion
Annual cost of medications per patient $2,500
DBS surgery cost $25,0004

  • A clinical trial found that a year after the implant, DBS increased “on” time — periods of good motor function and symptom relief — by an average of more than six hours per day. Along with these improvements, research shows that DBS significantly decreases dyskinesia — the uncontrollable, involuntary movements that often result from anti-Parkinsonian medications.3

  • The overall cost of DBS surgery to install electrodes that attempt to reduce tremors is $25,000.4 The value of this procedure is substantial to many patients who can subsequently decrease their medication use, rely less on caregivers and participate in society again.

  1. Medtronic. “Activa Therapy Clinical Summary.” (2002).

  2. Balakrishnan A, Okada C, Banner E, et al. “Implantable Electrodes for the Treatment of Parkinson's Disease.” http://biomed.brown.edu/Courses/BI108/BI108_1999_Groups/Neuroelectrodes
    _Team/home.html     (12 April 2006).

  3. Northwest Parkinson’s Foundation. “What is Parkinson’s Disease?” http://www.nwpf.com/aboutpark.asp (18 April 2006).

  4. Balakrishnan A, Okada C, Banner E, et al. “Implantable Electrodes for the Treatment of Parkinson’s Disease.” http://biomed.brown.edu/Courses/BI108/BI108_1999_Groups/Neuroelectrodes
    _Team/home.html     (12 April 2006).
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