Variable frequency stimulation of subthalamic nucleus in Parkinson’s disease: Rationale and hypothesis

Congratulations to Drs. Wei Hu, Aparna Wagle Shukla, Leonardo Almeida, and Michael Okun on the publication of “Variable frequency stimulation of subthalamic nucleus in Parkinson’s disease: Rationale and hypothesis.” in the March issue of 2017 of Parkinsonism & Related Disorders.

Highlights

  • Movement disorders are related with abnormal oscillations at different frequencies.
  • Frequency is an important characteristic in brain stimulation therapies.
  • High frequency stimulation only benefits certain motor symptoms in Parkinson’s disease, while low frequency stimulation provides other selective symptomatic benefit.
  • Unlike a traditional fixed frequency stimulation method, a new pattern of variable frequency stimulation is proposed.