Minnesota man among the first in the country to receive next generation DBS device for Parkinson’s disease
Since he was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease in 2019, Bruce Lunde, 81, hasn’t let it slow him down. He keeps up with his active lifestyle, including jogging, distance running, and tennis. He also stays busy maintaining his home – he even chops his own wood for heat. Although he takes medication multiple times a day to control his Parkinson’s symptoms, the tremors in his right hand and leg have affected his quality of life. “My handwriting has gotten a lot worse, for one thing,” he joked.
Parkinson’s disease is a neurodegenerative disease that causes tremors, slow movements, stiffness in the limbs and problems with walking and balance. It tends to get worse over time. While medications are available, they aren’t always enough to keep the symptoms in check. Another treatment option called deep brain stimulation (DBS) has been available for more than 30 years. It’s an FDA-approved technology where an electrode is implanted in the brain to regulate the brain’s activity and stop the abnormal signals that cause Parkinson’s symptoms. DBS is often compared to a pacemaker, but for the brain.
Fortunately for Lunde and for many other Minnesotans, M Health Fairview has helped pioneer the use of DBS therapy, and we have treated more than 1,000 DBS patients since 1997. Our center is staffed with some of the nation’s leading movement disorder and DBS experts. Through our partnership with the University of Minnesota, we have access to the Udall Center of Excellence in Parkinson’s Disease Research – a major academic hub for emerging Parkinson’s research and innovative DBS treatments.
DBS changes the lives of thousands of patients every year. On January 8, 2024, the FDA approved a new, next-generation DBS device from Medtronic called the Percept RC. It allows the healthcare team to monitor brain activity. This information will help advance understanding of what is going on in the brains of people with Parkinson’s disease. The device includes a rechargeable battery that can last up to 15 years.
Bruce’s neurologist, Paul Tuite, MD, a professor at University of Minnesota Medical School, referred him to Leonardo Almeida, MD. Almeida, a DBS specialist who is also a neurologist and an associate professor with University of Minnesota Medical School, helped identify Bruce as a good candidate for the Percept™ RC. He pointed out that Bruce’s medication dosages could not be upped without causing more unwanted side effects, so another type of intervention was needed. After giving it some thought, Bruce agreed that it could be a good treatment option for him.
"It's all about quality of life and finding a treatment that works for each person,” Tuite said. “For Mr. Lunde he tried standard medication therapy and still was not getting tremor relief and so DBS was offered as an option to control tremor and other symptoms. I am glad that the risk paid off for him. We as a group don't try to push patients into surgery or a specific treatment but provide options and information to help them make an informed decision."
The device offers sensing capability that monitors a patient’s brain signals in real time. Doctors can review those patterns and personalize therapy to the patient’s individual brain activity.
“I felt a little trepidation, but I was looking forward to it. If it worked, it would be great,” Lunde recalled. “I love that the battery lasts 15 years.”
On Jan. 22, 2024, Lunde underwent the low-risk surgery to have the electrode implanted in the brain, in a structure that is responsible for the tremor and other symptoms of Parkinson’s disease. Doctors use microelectrodes to monitor brain activity in order to find the precise location to place the structures in the brain.
On January 29, Bruce underwent the second part of the process, which is to have the device implanted under the skin in his chest and connected to the electrode by a thin wire threaded under the skin in his neck. That’s when Bruce became the first patient in the Midwest, and one of the first in the country, to have the Percept RC device implanted.
“We’re excited to be the first in the Midwest and one of the first in the country, to put this new device in,” said Robert McGovern, MD, the M Health Fairview neurosurgeon who performed the DBS surgery. McGovern is also an assistant professor at University of Minnesota Medical School.
Both surgeries went smoothly, and Bruce returned home for a few weeks to recover and heal.
On February 19, 2024, Bruce returned to M Health Fairview Clinics and Surgery Center with his wife and daughter to have the device activated. Because he had discontinued his Parkinson’s medication, his right-side tremors were active. With a few taps on an iPhone-like device, the technology was active. Instantly, Bruce’s tremors disappeared – and were replaced with a big smile of happiness and relief.
Bruce thanked his care team and said he looked forward to getting back up north to his home. “I’m looking forward to chain-sawing wood again,” he said. Cold was in the weekend’s forecast, and he hadn’t been able to stock up the woodpile for quite a while.
