At 09:36 am 03/11/97 -0500, donald mckinley wrote:
> thursday the 6th. at our support group we are having
>2 in to give us demmo og brain innsurrgin i would like those that had the
>other tell me about what you think and i woul like to print it out and take
>it with me if you don't care just yes or no. need asp or by 5th nov. thanks
=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=
=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D
The following article is about one of the men who will be speaking to Don's
support group on Thursday...
August 5, 1997
BY LAURAN NEERGAARD-Associated Press
WASHINGTON -- Howard Zirkle's hands shook so badly that he couldn't feed
himself --until he received a brain implant that halted his shakes.
The Food and Drug Administration approved the "deep brain
stimulator" Monday, saying it could help thousands with Parkinson's disease
or the equally debilitating and more common disorder called essential
tremor, which Zirkle suffers.
"It's made a great difference in my life," said Zirkle, 72, of
Minster, Ohio, who was almost a recluse for five years before testing
Medtronic Corp.'s Activa implant. "...I can pick up coffee now, carry it to
the patio and not
spill a drop."
About two million Americans have essential tremor, a
little-understood hereditary disorder that causes violent shaking. Another
1.5 million Americans have Parkinson's disease, a degenerative neurological
disease that causes shaking, rigid limbs and other worsening symptoms.
Dr. Frederick Junn, a neurosurgeon at Detroit's Henry Ford Hospital,
said that with approval of the new implant, doctors have at least partially
effective treatments for the three major symptoms of Parkinson's disease:
Tremor, and freezing and slowed movements.
Brain surgery called pallidotomy typically can lessen slowed and
freezing movements, Junn said. But the surgery may cause a person to develop=
a
fainter voice, may not work at all, or, in rare cases, may leave a patient
blind or paralyzed.
The drug L-dopa helps some Parkinson's symptoms. But only about 40
percent of essential tremor patients are helped with medicines.
Junn said FDA approval should improve insurance reimbursement for
the implants.
In a $25,000 procedure, doctors implant an electrode into the
thalamus, a walnut-sized region deep in the brain. The left side of the
thalamus controls movement in the right side of the body, and vice versa.
A wire runs under the scalp down to the collarbone, where a
pacemaker-sized pulse generator is implanted. It sends electrical waves to
the electrode, which emits tiny electrical shocks customized to block=
tremors.
In Medtronic's study of 196 Parkinson's and tremor patients, tremors
decreased in almost everyone and sometimes disappeared. Some 58 percent of
tremor patients and 67 percent of Parkinson's patients had a significant
reduction.
Then doctors tested whether patients' lives improved. Essential
tremor patients immediately could write, pour liquids without spilling and
perform other tasks better.
Parkinson's patients weren't helped as much, the FDA said. The
implant lets them sit still, but doesn't help other symptoms.
So few patients have had double implants to help both sides of the
body that the FDA approved only single implants Monday. Until then, doctors
recommend the implant for the hand a patient uses most.
The implants can be quickly adjusted by radio waves. They can be
turned off by running a magnet over the spot where the generator is
implanted. Zirkle turns off his at night to conserve the battery.
About 5 percent of patients suffer bleeding in the brain or other
surgery complications. Also, patients suffer some discomfort during the
operation because they must be awake while the implant is placed. Batteries
must be surgically replaced every three to five years.
For more information, call 1-800-664-5111, ext. 1010, 8 a.m.-6 p.m.
weekdays. Or see Medtronic's Web site.
Free Press medical writer Patricia Anstett contributed to this report.
All content =A9 copyright 1997 Detroit Free Press and may not be republished
without permission.=20
Judith Richards
[log in to unmask]
