Psychiatry

General Psychiatry, Community Mental Health and Addictions -
Deep Brain Stimulation (DBS)

Clinics | Research | Staff | Audio Presentations | Medication

The first line of treatment for depression is antidepressant drugs. But, in some cases, drugs cannot produce an adequate therapeutic response. In such cases, called treatment –resistant depression, psychiatrists turn to other kinds of treatment to provide some symptom relief. One such treatment is Deep Brain Stimulation, or DBS for short.

DBS starts with the surgical implantation of electrodes into specific brain areas to deliver minute electrical impulses that block abnormal electrical brain activity and reset normal electrical rhythms. DBS works like a “pacemaker” regulating brain activity similar to a heart pacemaker that regulates the pumping of the heart. The result, in many cases, is a remarkable alleviation of symptoms.

Surgery involves the implantation of ultra thin electrodes into specific brain areas. The other ends of the electrodes are connected to a pacemaker that is implanted under the skin over the chest. The surgery is virtually painless and does not require any anesthetic except for a local around the skull opening. At the end of the procedure the pacemaker can be programmed externally and is again painless.

We can:

We are located at:

Toronto General Hospital
200 Elizabeth Street
8th Floor – Eaton Wing
Toronto, ON M5G 2C4
Directions

Call ( 416) 340-3888 for an appointment

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