Posted by blueboy on May 31, 2008, at 10:37:35
In reply to Deep Brain Stimulation, posted by okydoky on May 30, 2008, at 19:58:21
> This is probably posted somewhere else but here it goes. My neighbor said she saw on PBS (I think) a program about depression and Deep Brain Stimulation. She described it like what is done with people with Parkinsons. Said it was pacemaker type device with electrodes in the brain. I have not heard of this. Can anyone tell me anything?
>
You can watch the recent PBS show "Depression: Out of the Shadows" online:http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/takeonestep/depression/video-ch_01.html
Also, it is being rebroadcast fairly often, as it was a popular show.
I know that the Cleveland Clinic has a very active DBS program for depression; however, they have a bad reputation for not sharing information with other research entities. Not to say that they don't do a great job.
The DBS on the television show was a woman at Emory U. in Atlanta. I recently consulted a researcher at Emory and he said that there aren't any research programs starting in the near future dealing with DBS for Bipolar disorders.
I'd be a bit careful about the success stories shown on tv. The success rate for the study I looked at was under 50%. However, I am guessing that the patients were extremely therapy resistant, so 50% may be a very high achievement. Certainly, it is an invasive procedure.
I was recently told I was "definitely" bipolar, for the first time in decades of treatment for depression and anxiety. For myself, if I go through more than 4 or 5 drugs targeted at Bipolar without success, I would rather try DBS than ECT.
poster:blueboy
thread:832142
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20080528/msgs/832196.html