New App Allows Parkinson’s Patients to Adjust Their Deep Brain Stimulator

In this video from CBS New York, Dr. Max Gomez discusses a new mobile app which allows people living with Parkinson’s disease to adjust their brain stimulators.

MORE: Seven things to know about deep brain stimulation for Parkinson’s disease. 

Some people with Parkinson’s disease opt to have deep brain stimulators (DBS) inserted into their brain as a way of controlling their tremors. They work by sending electrical signals to the brain which quiets the tremors, but the system often needs regular tweaking to get the best results for the patients, which meant multiple visits to the doctor’s office.

The new app allows the patients to take videos of their tremors to send directly to their doctor who can then adjust the settings. The app connects to the DBS device via bluetooth and patients can control the signals within the preset parameters to turn the signals higher or lower, on or off.

MORE: New watch prototype can quiet Parkinson’s disease tremors

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