title: High-frequency stimulation in Parkinson's disease: more or less?
abstract: Deep-brain stimulation at high frequency is now considered the most effective neurosurgical therapy for movement disorders. An electrode is chronically implanted in a particular area of the brain and, when continuously stimulated, it significantly alleviates motor symptoms. In Parkinson's disease, common target nuclei of high-frequency stimulation (HFS) are ventral thalamic nuclei and basal ganglia nuclei, such as the internal segment of the pallidum and the subthalamic nucleus (STN), with a preference for the STN in recent years. Two fundamental mechanisms have been proposed to underlie the beneficial effects of HFS: silencing or excitation of STN neurons. Relying on recent experimental data, we suggest that both are instrumental: HFS switches off a pathological disrupted activity in the STN (a 'less' mechanism) and imposes a new type of discharge in the upper gamma-band frequency that is endowed with beneficial effects (a 'more' mechanism). The intrinsic capacity of basal ganglia and particular STN neurons to generate oscillations and shift rapidly from a physiological to a pathogenic pattern is pivotal in the operation of these circuits in health and disease.
authors.affiliation: Laboratoire de neurophysiologie (Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique UMR 5543), Université de Bordeaux 2,146 rue Léo Saignat, 33076 Bordeaux Cedex, France.
authors.forename: Liliana
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Garcia
authors.forename: Giampaolo
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: D'Alessandro
authors.forename: Bernard
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Bioulac
authors.forename: Constance
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Hammond
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001479:Basal Ganglia / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000528:radiation effects; D046690:Deep Brain Stimulation; D004307:Dose-Response Relationship, Radiation; D006801:Humans; D016571:Neural Networks, Computer; D009474:Neurons / Q000502:physiology / Q000528:radiation effects; D010300:Parkinson Disease / Q000628:therapy*; D020531:Subthalamic Nucleus / Q000166:cytology / Q000528:radiation effects; D013997:Time Factors