Brain stimulation

Researchers at the University of Copenhagen have identified a specific set of neurons in the brainstem that, when stimulated by electric pulses, can help improve the mobility of patients with Parkinson’s disease.

A fascinating new study explores how it ultrasound could one day be used to tackle psychiatric disorders, by modulating the way the brains of monkeys connect rewards and outcomes with specific events or choices.

An incredible proof-of-concept study has demonstrated how a brain implant can treat severe depression using electrical stimulation. The implant tracks neural activity for patterns of depression and zaps a key region in real-time to disrupt the cycle.

New research is shedding light on how specifically targeted pulses of magnetic stimulation to the brain can improve episodic memory. The work found inhibiting activity in the left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex enhances memory formation.

Researchers have developed a brain implant designed to detect pain sensations in real-time and deliver bursts of pain-relieving stimulation. The device is still experimental but a proof of concept study shows it working effectively in rodent models.

A novel wearable that stimulates the olfactory system using electrical pulses has been proposed as a way to prevent or slow dementia-related neurodegeneration. A dysfunctional sense of smell is suspected to be one of the earliest signs of Alzheimer’s.

New data reporting the long-term effects of deep brain stimulation on early-stage Parkinson’s patients has found the treatment significantly slows the progression of the disease. A large Phase 3 trial is now underway to verify these findings.

The brain is hard to treat – medications have side effects and surgery is dangerous and invasive. But now, researchers have shown how ultrasound can be used to affect specific regions of the brain, and even influence behavior in monkeys.

Stanford researchers optimized an FDA-approved form of non-invasive magnetic brain stimulation to better treat treatment-resistant depression. A preliminary study achieved a 90-percent remission rate, with larger trials underway.

University of Wisconson, Madison researchers have found a kind of "consciousness switch" in a specific area of the brain. When they hit this spot with electrical stimulation, monkeys immediately woke up from an anesthetized state.

Following on from prior research finding brain wave patterns can signal whether antidepressant medication will be effective, a study is reporting the development of an algorithm that can predict patient response to antidepressants based on EEG data.

Researchers at Northwestern University have used a non-invasive form of magnetic brain stimulation to improve the memory of older adults. After just five short sessions the older adults scored as well as a younger cohort on a variety of memory tasks.