Movement Disorders
Movement disorders refer to a group of neurological conditions that cause abnormal increased movements, which may be voluntary or involuntary. Movement disorders can also cause reduced or slow movements.
There are many different movement disorders in which abnormal movements occur either alone or in clusters. Some of the more common types of movement disorders include:
- Parkinson's disease: can cause resting tremors, slowness of movement or trouble walking, stiffness, and/or dystonia.
- Essential Tremor (aka Familial Tremor): tremor that primarily occurs when performing an action like eating or drinking. This often occurs in the hands but can also occur in the head and neck. This type of tremor tends to run in families.
- Tardive Dyskinesia: involuntary movements of the face, mouth, tongue, trunk, or limbs. Facial movements may include lip smacking, tongue protrusion or pursing of the lips.
- Tourette's Syndrome: a condition involving motor or vocal tics. Stress or anxiety can make these worse.
- Huntington's disease: an inherited disease that leads to the deterioration and dysfunction of nerve cells in certain parts of the brain. Chorea is a common abnormal movement seen in Huntington's disease.
The treatment of movement disorders depends on the symptoms and their cause. Most conditions are managed with a combination of medication and other non-medication therapies like physical therapy, speech therapy, etc. Some conditions, like Parkinson’s disease, essential tremor or dystonia may also be managed with Deep Brain Stimulation therapy (DBS), High-Frequency Ultrasound therapy and Gamma-Knife Radiation therapy, in which our movement team specializes. Our movement specialists will be able to discuss appropriate treatment options with you after a thorough history-taking and physical/neurological examination.
Deep Brain Stimulation Therapy
Deep Brain Stimulation (DBS) therapy is one that uses electrical stimulation delivered to a certain area of the brain that helps control movements. DBS is a surgical procedure involving the implantation of a thin electrode and a battery pack that gets implanted in the chest, much like a pacemaker.
Click here for more information on DBS.
High-Frequency Ultrasound Therapy
High-Frequency Ultrasound Therapy (HIFU) is a non-invasive procedure using high-speed sound waves to lesion a small part of the brain. These are not sound waves that you can hear. The sound waves are guided by MRI for precise localization.
HIFU can be an effective treatment for tremor in essential tremor patients, and for patients with Parkinson’s disease who have a tremor that doesn’t respond well to medication.
Gamma-Knife Radiation Therapy
Gamma knife radiation is similar to HIFU in that it is non-invasive. However, instead of sound waves, it uses a concentrated laser of radiation to lesion a small part of the brain. This is also performed under MRI guidance.