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Alan Bonander recently wrote "If a researcher would evaluate the MRI scans of pallidotomy patients and try to correlate brain atrophy to age and medication levels I think much might be learned." I recently read a pamphlet titled 'Victory over Parkinson's Disease in Sight' edited by Robert L. Mathews and dated August 1994. This is subtitled 'An Update from the Loma Linda Clinical Neurosciences Institute, A Major Specialized Center for the Diagnosis and Treatment of Parkinson's Disease'. Dr Robert Iacono is the group leader. I will type only a few sentences from the document. PD patients have a greatly reduced flow of blood to the brain ....As soon as the morning after pallidotomy surgery, SPECT scans show greatly increased blood flow... dramatic improvement in frontal lobe function by increased blood flow and metabolism; possibly impacting depression, motivation ... conjectures that stopping the hyperactive phenomena in the PD brain may allow circulation to return to normal. I am curious whether Alan read this pamphflet .. or has other information re pallidotomy. Excellent results are claimed for pallidotomy. I too have conjectured how lesioning (or electrical stimulation) can affect the brain functioning that is abnormal in PD. The video documentaries of brain functioning show chemical and electrical signals pulsing through complex networks. Multiple inputs cause modulated outputs with some 'control cells' having greater influence. Signals from some neural cells are inhibitory ... stop the normal output from occurring. Is there a connection - correlation - analogy - of the neural network suppression of motor messages during rem sleep ... to the akinetic (frozen) state of PD? The pallidotomy may be effective via removing the inhibiting of the 'sleeping inactivity factor' that may be the major part of PD. The conjecture is that hyperactivity of the neural retarder is occurring while we are awake. Our motor control is abnormal because the circuitry is at least partly set as it is during rem sleep while we are awake. Reduced mentation is resultant from the retarded frontal lobe activity. The increased blood flow apparently correlates with the feelings of well-being and self esteem and relief from the 'depressed state of low frontal lobe activity' which becomes clinical depression in the extreme. Manic-depressive has been my personality type if I make a choice of the types in the psychology books. I believe I was told or read that manic might correlate to hyper-endorphinated and depression to hypo-endorphinated. Maybe these could be hyper-serotonin in the frontal and hypo- for the depressive. Does the personality type correlate for others of you with PD? Has your mood typically been up or down? Are you hyperactive .. maybe euphoric ... seeking peak experience - or else doing little and being withdrawn? The cycles may be brief or last days or weeks or months. Ron <[log in to unmask]> Ronald F. Vetter 2105 S. Camino el Canon, Ridgecrest, CA 93556-7656 619/375-7263 "I,d like to know what this whole show is all about before it's out" Piet Hein