Neurologists and neurosurgeons
have used electrical stimulation since the 1960s as a way to locate and
distinguish specific sites in the brain. In the process, they discovered that
stimulation of certain brain structures could suppress the symptoms of
neurological disorders such as Essential Tremor, Dystonia and Parkinson's.
Medtronic introduced the first
pacemaker 60 years ago, in the 1980s, as a result of the application of the
pacemaker technology to neurological disorders. Medtronic then developed brain stimulation technology in conjunction
with leading physician researchers and, in 1987, professors Alim-Louis Benabid
and Pierre Pollak of the University of Grenoble in France published the results
of the first application of deep brain stimulation for the treatment of
Movement disorders. Since then, four indications for Medtronic DBS therapy have
become available.
Medtronic DBS therapy for
Essential Tremor, which has been approved in Canada, Europe and Australia since
1993 and in the United States since 1997, targets the Thalamus to suppress
tremor associated with Essential Tremor or Parkinson's disease. The thalamus is
the brain's message relay center and is intricately involved in movement
control.
Medtronic DBS
therapy for Parkinson’s disease was approved in the United States in 2002. It
has been approved in Canada, Europe and Australia since 1998. It extends the
use of Medtronic's brain stimulation technology to benefit patients with
advanced, Levodopa
responsive Parkinson's disease. Medtronic DBS therapy for Parkinson’s targets
the Subthalamic nucleus (STN) or the internal Globus Pallidus (GPi)
to suppress some of the symptoms of Parkinson's. These areas are also
intricately involved in movement control.
Since
1993, more than 80,000 patients worldwide have received Medtronic DBS therapy
for movement disorders.
More
than 20 years of collaboration with the medical community has enabled Medtronic
Neuromodulation to push the frontiers of medicine and to develop new therapy
solutions for patients with Psychiatric conditions such as Obsessive Compulsive
Disorder (OCD) and Epilepsy.
In
July 2009 Medtronic pioneered another landmark and received the world’s first
DBS CE mark approval for a psychiatric condition. And in 2010 , another major
milestone was granted, the CE mark for the treatment of Epilepsy refractory to
medical treatment.
Today Medtronic is also
leading the way towards other psychiatric conditions such as Depression amongst many other conditions.
About Medtronic
With the invention of the pacemaker, Medtronic
created a new industry based on medical technology. For over 60 years,
Medtronic has worked with physicians from around the world to create products
and therapies that alleviate pain, restore health, and extend life. Medtronic
currently provides products and services that treat more than two million
people a year. To date, more than 80,000 patients have benefited from Medtronic
DBS therapies over the world. For more information about Medtronic visit www.medtronic.eu
