Given that this is a VA study, it's safe to assume that the participants
were overwhelmingly male. Once again, a study that leaves women out of the
picture.

Kathleen

2009/1/16 Wilson DeCamp <[log in to unmask]>

>
> From: VA Media Relations <[log in to unmask]>
> To:  [log in to unmask]
> Date: Tue, 13 Jan 2009 13:46:30  -0500
> Subject: Release - VA-NIH Study Offers Hope for Parkinson's  Patients
>
>
> VA-NIH Study Offers Hope for Parkinson's  Patients
>
> Study Says Deep-Brain Stimulation Has Benefits
>
> WASHINGTON (January 13, 2009) -- Electrical stimulation of the  brain -- a
> treatment in which a pacemaker-like device sends pulses to electrodes
>  implanted
> in the brain -- is riskier than drug therapy but may hold significant
> benefits for those with Parkinson's disease who no longer respond well to
> medication alone.
> That is the conclusion of researchers  from the Department of Veterans
> Affairs (VA) and National Institutes of Health  (NIH) who conducted a
> six-year study
> comparing deep-brain stimulation (DBS) to  medication, along with speech,
> physical or occupational therapy, given as  needed.  The results of the
> trial,
> the largest of its kind to date, appear  in the January 7 Journal of the
> American Medical Association (JAMA).
> "Deep-brain stimulation offers hope for a large number of patients  with
> advanced Parkinson's disease who suffer from complications of long-standing
> medication therapy," said Secretary of Veterans Affairs Dr. James B. Peake.
>  "This
> finding could mean improved quality of life for some of our  patients."
> The study included 255 Parkinson's patients  at seven VA medical centers
> and
> six university hospitals.  The VA sites  were Portland, Ore., Seattle, San
> Francisco, Los Angeles, Houston, Richmond,  Va., and Philadelphia, all
> members of
> VA's network of Parkinson's Disease  Research, Education and Clinical
> Centers.
> The JAMA  article also noted VA's nationwide system of hospitals and
> specialized centers  of excellence make the Department uniquely capable of
> conducting
> such large,  multi-site trials of new therapies and medical devices.  VA's
> patient  population is especially suited for trials of treatments for
> chronic
> disease in  the elderly.
> Patients who took part in the study were on  medication but are no longer
> seeing improvements in symptoms such as tremors or  stiffness. Many were
> also
> developing side effects from the drugs, such as  involuntary face, arm or
> leg
> movements.
> Researchers  followed the patients for six months, finding:
> *  Patients who received DBS gained an average of 4.6 hours per day of good
> motor  control and few or no involuntary movements, compared with no gain
> for
> those on  medical therapy alone;
>      * 71 percent of DBS patients showed  significant gains in motor
> function, compared with only 32 percent of drug  therapy patients; and
> * Serious adverse  side effects were nearly four times more common in the
> DBS
> group, but almost all  of these effects in both groups were resolved during
> the six-month study.   The most common side effects from DBS were
> infections,
> falls, depression, gait  and balance problems, and pain.
> Lead authors and  study co-chairs were Frances Weaver, PhD, a researcher
> with
> the Center for  Management of Complex Chronic Care at the Hines VA Hospital
> near Chicago, and  Dr. Kenneth Follett, a neurosurgeon at the Omaha VA
> Medical
> Center and  University of Nebraska.  They emphasize that besides the higher
> likelihood  of serious side effects with DBS compared with drug therapy,
> another
> drawback of  the procedure is that, although it generally improves
> movement,
> it does little  to help other Parkinson's symptoms such as depression,
> decline
> in mental  ability, gait and balance problems, and trouble with
> gastrointestinal, urinary  or sexual function.
> "The results of the study should not  be over- or under-stated," said Dr.
> Michael Kussman, VA's Under Secretary for  Health.  "Still, there are many
> good
> candidates for DBS among patients with  Parkinson's disease whom we treat
> in
> VA."
> The trial was  sponsored by VA's Cooperative Studies Program and the
> National
> Institute of  Neurological Disorders and Stroke, part of the National
> Institutes of Health.  Additional support came from Medtronic, which makes
> the DBS
> system used in the  study.
> Parkinson's disease, a progressive neurological  disorder, affects some 1.5
> million Americans, with 50,000 new cases diagnosed  annually. VA treats at
> least 40,000 veterans with the disorder each year.   Most patients are over
> age
> 50, but some forms of the disease can strike younger  adults.
>
>
>
>
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