SceneRay first wireless remote rechargeable brain pacemaker in Henan was successfully implanted in Zhumadian Central Hospital!

Mr. Wu, 70, was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease four years ago. He developed resting tremors with no apparent cause and hypertonia in his lower limbs, making even basic daily tasks like eating and drinking difficult. He sought treatment at numerous hospitals across China, adjusting his oral medications. However, as his condition progressed, his symptoms worsened, significantly impacting his quality of life.

On December 24th, Mr. Wu visited the First Department of Neurosurgery at Zhumadian Central Hospital. Dr. Yang Yang, the on-duty physician, reviewed his condition and diagnosed him with Parkinson's disease. After a discussion led by Department Director Li Li, the decision was made to perform deep brain stem (DBS) surgery (commonly known as a "pacemaker") to permanently address his condition. This technique requires precise targeting of specific neural nuclei deep within the brain (with an accuracy of no more than 1mm), requiring the surgeon to be intimately familiar with brain anatomy. Even the slightest deviation would result in poor surgical outcomes and could even lead to serious complications. Furthermore, due to the patient's advanced age and pre-existing health, the surgery required close multidisciplinary collaboration.

On December 26th, the hospital convened experts from the Department of Cardiology, Neurology, Respiratory Medicine, Anesthesiology, Surgery, and Radiology departments to conduct ethical review and preoperative consultations. After thorough preparations, on December 29th, the department invited Professor Wang Xuelian from the Tangdu Hospital of the Air Force Medical University to oversee the operation. After an eight-hour effort by multidisciplinary medical staff from the Central Hospital, the operation was successfully completed. The patient's resting tremor symptoms and quality of life improved significantly after the operation.

Director Li Li introduced: Parkinson's disease is a common disease in the elderly, with an incidence rate of up to 1% in people over 65 years old. As the aging process of my country's population gradually accelerates, Parkinson's disease is becoming more and more common in clinical practice. The traditional treatment for Parkinson's disease is oral medication, but as the disease progresses, the effect of oral medication will become less and less effective, and then surgery is needed. During the operation, a stereotactic method is used for precise positioning, and stimulating electrodes are implanted at specific targets in the brain. Through the pulse generator implanted in the body, high-frequency, weak electrical pulses are emitted to stimulate related nerve nuclei, regulate abnormal brain nerve activity, and thus reduce and alleviate the symptoms of the disease. It is a new functional neurosurgery therapy. Because this technology is similar to the pacemaker used in cardiology, it is commonly known as a "brain pacemaker."

It is understood that DBS surgery has been performed on over 140,000 Parkinson's patients at 500 centers worldwide. The long-term effectiveness and stability of DBS in treating Parkinson's disease have been proven. The Department of Neurosurgery at Zhumadian Central Hospital has mastered this technique through a combination of regular training sessions with external experts. The implementation of this type of surgery marks Zhumadian Central Hospital's neurosurgery department as a leading provider of surgical treatment for Parkinson's disease in the province. (By Yang Yang and Li Mujia)

Zhumadian Central Hospital

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—Article reprinted from the Zhumadian Central Hospital subscription account