Neurotherapeutics : the journal of the American Society for Experimental NeuroTherapeutics
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Surgery for psychiatric disorders first began in the early part of the last century when the therapeutic options for these patients were limited. The introduction of deep brain stimulation (DBS) has caused a new interest in the surgical treatment of these disorders. ⋯ A critical review of the major DBS targets under investigation for Tourette's syndrome, obsessive-compulsive disorder, and major depression is presented. Current and future challenges for the use of DBS in psychiatric disorders are discussed, as well as a rationale for referring to this subspecialty as limbic disorders surgery based on the parallels with movement disorders surgery.
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Many patients who suffer from medically refractory epilepsy are not candidates for resective brain surgery. Success of deep brain stimulation (DBS) in relieving a significant number of symptoms of various movement disorders paved the way for investigations into this modality for epilepsy. ⋯ Thus, it is difficult as yet to make any definitive judgments about the efficacy of DBS for seizure control. Future study is necessary to identify a patient population for whom this technique would be indicated, the most efficacious target, and optimal stimulation parameters.