The Promising Future of Parkinson’s Treatment

Movement is fine-tuned in the basal ganglia of the brain, yet with the loss of dopamine-producing neurons, communication along motor circuits becomes irregular and disrupts the regulation of action potentials to muscle cells (Cleveland Clinic, n.d.). This creates the characteristic tremor, rigidity, instability, and bradykinesia in Parkinson’s disease (PD). Parkinson’s ranks first in motor disorders and falls just behind Alzheimer’s in neurodegenerative diseases. It impacts at least 1% of elders over age 60 globally and is more common in males than in females. However, although highly rare, symptoms can manifest in adults as young as 20, typically having a close relative with PD (Cleveland Clinic, n.d.). The urgency to treat symptoms of PD is growing, and, to our luck, neuroscientists are making quite remarkable breakthroughs. 

According to the University of California, San Francisco, groundbreaking research here has shown great promise in a new clinical therapy called adaptive deep brain stimulation, which tracks the development of Parkinson’s symptoms in the brain (2025). It responds with calibrated electrical pulses upon the detection of specific brain activity patterns to counteract symptoms before they can fully manifest in patients. There are two distinct algorithms upon which it operates: a “fast” algorithm that identifies pathological signals and keeps these at bay, along with a “slow” algorithm that modulates electrical stimulation to the brain to maintain brain activity within a range that keeps symptoms controlled (University of California, San Francisco, 2025).

From this dual-algorithm system, aDBS can work to ward off characteristic symptoms of PD like stiffness, involuntary movements, tremors, and bradykinesia (University of California, San Francisco, 2025). The algorithmic system is becoming more standardized in practice as the central operating system for a new Medtronic device intended to assist Parkinson’s patients. Before we know it, this system will become more personalized to patients and as simple to use and choose which adaptive algorithm works most effectively through the click of a button on Bluetooth-enabled software. As aDBS becomes standardized across patient care, we can grow more secure in the idea of personalized medicine with aDBS, and this, in turn, leads to a precise and individualized treatment plan (University of California, San Francisco, 2025). 

Despite growing controversy over the use of artificial intelligence in medical science and healthcare, it is worthwhile to incorporate aDBS into patient care and monitor its effects in PD patients. While clinical scientists are not relying on AI alone, new technologies incorporating AI, like aDBS, provide a strong, hopeful addition to the evolving medication pipeline for Parkinson’s. One such target among the development of these medications is alpha-synuclein aggregation, which seeds within Lewy bodies in the diseased nerve cells of a Parkinson’s brain, which is being attacked with a variety of treatments incorporating antibodies, vaccines, inhibitors, GLP-1 agonists, and enzyme replacement therapy (American Parkinson Disease Association, 2024). The ever-growing field of clinical neuroscience is steadily advancing the future of Parkinson’s treatment through innovative research and therapeutic care.

references:

Gilbert, Dr Rebecca. “The Future of Parkinson’s Disease Treatments.” APDA, 25 Aug. 2020, www.apdaparkinson.org/article/future-parkinsons-disease-treatments/.

‌Cleveland Clinic. “Parkinson’s Disease: Causes, Symptoms, Stages, Treatment, Support.” Cleveland Clinic, 15 Apr. 2022, my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/8525-parkinsons-disease-an-overview.

Marks, Robin. “This New Treatment Can Adjust to Parkinson’s Symptoms in Real Time.” This New Treatment Can Adjust to Parkinson’s Symptoms in Real Time | UC San Francisco, 24 Feb. 2025, www.ucsf.edu/news/2025/02/429506/new-treatment-can-adjust-parkinsons-symptoms-real-time.

‌PICTURE CREDIT:

National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke. (2024, August 19). Self‑adjusting brain pacemaker may help reduce Parkinson’s disease symptoms [Press release]. National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke. Retrieved June 23, 2025, from https://www.ninds.nih.gov/news-events/news/press-releases/self-adjusting-brain-pacemaker-may-help-reduce-parkinsons-disease-symptoms