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Prof. dr. Yasin Temel neurosurgeon As a highly intricate system of tens of billions of nerve cells all cooperating with each other, the brain is the most complex organ in the human body. Scientific research is telling us more and more about the organ that enables us to think and remember and that controls our bodies. Even though we only understand a small fraction of the fundamental functions of the brain, the knowledge we have acquired allows us to treat disorders such as Tourette syndrome, epilepsy and Parkinson’s disease. We are doing so using an innovative technique called deep brain stimulation, for which we are known to be world leading. Without fundamental knowledge about the brain, we would never have been able to develop this treatment method. To give an example: Parkinson’s disease is an incurable illness that has a severe impact on the patients’ quality of life. As their nerve cells die off, the patients start to struggle with their movement, for instance. Depression and falls are also common occurrences. We know that certain brain areas that are crucial for movement no longer function properly in Parkinson’s patients. Brain research has taught us which areas are responsible for movement, emotions and so on. In deep brain stimulation, we implant an electrode in exactly those areas of the brain that no longer function properly. By administering small electric impulses locally, we can influence brain function, resulting in the disappearance of uncontrolled movements and providing better quality of life. The progressive insight afforded by research tells us which brain areas to target to achieve optimal results; not just for Parkinson’s disease, but for other brain disorders too. In doing so, we are looking at the activity of individual cells as well as the brain as a whole. The technique we use is also constantly improving. The stimulator we currently use is connected to an external switch by a wire. At Maastricht UMC+, we are working on better and less invasive techniques to control areas of the brain. In the future, it will for example be possible to use magnetism, which will enable us to control the brain stimulator wirelessly from the outside. This is yet another innovation that will offer great benefits to the patient. On the job


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