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I find it interesting most of the members on the list find pallidotomy to be risky. From my understanding there is minimal risk for those who are deemed to be good candidates. I had the procedure on Sept. 24, 1997, and have had tremendous results. I will have the other side done in the first quarter of this year. Dr. David Roberts, the surgeon responsible for my success, said that there is a 4% chance of loss of some or all of peripheal vision and even less of a chance of partial paralysis on the opposing side from the operation site. To me it was as Jim said,"an act of desparation". However, I am going to have the other side done, and it is not an act of desparation. I couldn't live with myself if I did not take every calculated risk to better my quality of life. If you are not a good candidate then I would try these alternative treatments. Pallidotomy along with thalamotomy are two accepted procedures. They are not experimental and therefore are paid by most insurance companies. My experience keeps getting better, as I have just started to add Mirapex to my drug therapy. I am down to 800 milligrams of sinemet a day from 1600mg. I experience just a little bit of dyskinesia on my left (non-surgery) side. I have no, that's right, no off time. I do not want to oversell this option, but I think it is a vialbe option for many seeking to improve their situation. I will get off my soap box for now. Regards, Greg Leeman 37/6 [log in to unmask] -----Original Message----- From: Judith Richards <[log in to unmask]> To: Multiple recipients of list PARKINSN <[log in to unmask]> Date: Sunday, January 18, 1998 10:56 PM Subject: Jim Finn - a celebrity in our midst >I had the good fortune today to see (and tape) the HealthWeek program on PBS >in which our own Jim Finn was featured. It was about two surgical >procedures, Deep Brain Stimulation and Jim's Pig Cell Implants. > >Father Elias Velonis, whose Parkinson mask made his parishioners feel he was >not listening to them, and whose freezing and festination made if difficult >to do his job, said of his DBS, "It's like your life is back; now try to >live it well." > >Dr. Mahlon DeLong of Emory University in Atlanta said the DBS, which has the >same risks as any other delicate brain surgery, is wonderful because "it >works for all symptoms of Parkinson's Disease." Side effects, which are >permanent in pallidotomy patients, can be adjusted or eliminated in those >with DBS. > >Jim's segment started with him telling how difficult life had become, and >his decision to take part in this experimental procedure was "an act of >desperation." Dr. Samuel Ellias of Boston University Medical Centre >explained that the surgery was once done with human fetus cells, but >anti-abortionists protested, and there was difficulty getting enough human >fetuses -- about a dozen are needed for each transplantation, whereas >there's an almost unlimited supply of cells from pigs. > >Dr. John Nutt of Oregon Health Sciences University said candidates chosen >for the surgery were those who had responded well to levadopa, but whose >response to medications was no longer as good, and who were having >involuntary movements. > >The doctors cautioned that no one knows the long-term effects of either >procedure. > >However, they also said treatment for PD is making great progress, with two >new drugs introduced in 1997, and at least two more scheduled for this year. >Also, new treatments are being investigated, one of which might slow the >progression of Parkinson's. The other might bring back injured >dopamine-producing neurons that have not yet died. > >There were before and after shots of Jim doing finger co-ordination >exercises. His big smile in the "after" pictures was a joy to behold. > >Thanks, Jim, for sharing your experience with us. > >Judith Richards >[log in to unmask] >