New treatment for tremors available at Medical Center
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| W. Augustus Cheatham, MSW, vice president for public affairs and marketing (left), and neurosurgeon Robert Iacono, MD, FACS, listen as Spencer Gordon responds to questions from the media. Mr. Gordon was Loma Linda's first patient to receive a new implantable device for treating essential tremor and tremor associated with Parkinson's disease. |
Since the recent U.S. Food and Drug ADMinistration (FDA) approval, he was the first patient at Loma Linda University Medical Center to receive a new implantable device for treating essential tremor and tremor (associated with Parkinson's disease)--a condition affecting more than 1.5 million Americans.
At a news conference, Robert P. Iacono, MD, FACS, neurosurgeon, explained the procedure to the media. Additionally, Mr. Gordon, a resident of Keene, Texas--who had received the device that morning--took center stage as he demonstrated the results of his surgery.
Mr. Gordon held up a glass of water to show how his uncontrollable shaking spilled most of the drink before it reached his mouth. Then Dr. Iacono turned on the device. Within seconds, he steadied his grip and brought the glass to his mouth.
The implanted device will prevent him from going through metal detectors or having magnetic imaging tests, but he should have few other limitations. He'll be able to swim, ski, or do any other activity, Dr. Iacono pointed out.
For now he'll enjoy the simple activities not possible for years--snapping his fingers, counting on one hand, and giving his doctor an okay sign.
Tremor--the disabling, involuntary rhythmic shaking of the limbs or other parts of the body--is the only symptom of essential tremor ,and one of four major symptoms of Parkinson's disease. Mr. Gordon received the new Activaô Tremor Control Therapy by Medtronic, which uses an implanted device to suppress tremor.
"Before the implant, patients could not raise a glass of water or a spoonful of food to their mouths without spilling or striking themselves in the face," declares Dr. Iacono, who participated in the clinical trials leading up to FDA approval of the implantable device.
"Within hours, these same patients are sipping water from a glass and eating peas with a fork with no signs of their disability. Tremor control therapy stops all or nearly all involuntary shaking in most patients almost instantly."
Essential tremor is the most common neurological movement disorder in this country. The condition affects at least a million Americans, usually age 45 or older.
Parkinson's disease is a progressive and degenerative neurological disease that affects approximately 500,000 people in the United States. Tremor worsens from mild to disabling at a variable rate, depending on the individual. Currently, thousands of people throughout Europe, Canada, and Australia have the device implanted to control tremor.
The implanted system delivers mild electrical stimulation to block brain signals that cause tremor. The system includes an insulated wire lead that is surgically implanted deep within the brain's communication center--the thalamus. The lead is connected by an extension wire passed under the skin to an implanted pulse generator, similar to an advanced cardiac pacemaker which is implanted near the collarbone.
Patients control the stimulation by passing a hand-held magnet over the implanted pulse generator to turn it on or off, or to increase or decrease stimulation depending on their tremor suppression needs. To achieve maximum tremor suppression, physicians program the generator to deliver the precise stimulation needed for each patient.
"The Activa system is a safe and adaptable therapy for patients whose drug therapy has been ineffective," Dr. Iacono says.
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