TUS to Disrupt Pathological Oscillations

To join this study, you need to be at least 18 years old. We are looking for people who have Parkinson's disease and already have a specific type of brain implant (Medtronic Percept or similar, or certain temporary electrodes used before surgery) that can measure brain signals. These implants are important because they help us understand how the sound wave treatment is affecting your brain.

You should also be generally well enough to comfortably receive the ultrasound treatment, and your Parkinson's medication should have been stable for at least six weeks before joining. Importantly, we need to be able to see those specific 'noisy' brainwaves mentioned earlier during your initial check-up for the study.

Unfortunately, you can't participate if you have another brain condition that might affect the results, or if you have a fever when you come for your study visit. We also need to be sure you can understand the study information, even with help from an interpreter if needed, as some implants don't work with our measurement tools.

If you decide to take part, you'll have specific study visits. Before the ultrasound treatment, we'll use your existing brain scans (MRI and CT) to map out the exact areas in your brain to target. Then, during the study visits, you will receive two types of focused ultrasound: the 'active' treatment and a 'sham' (dummy) treatment, or treatment to a different brain area, so we can compare the effects. You won't know which one you're getting at the time.

During these sessions, you'll be asked to do some simple tasks, like looking at moving dots or performing motor tasks, while the ultrasound is being applied. We'll also take measurements of your brain activity using your existing implants or external electrodes, and monitor your heart with an ECG.

A doctor will also assess your Parkinson's symptoms during each step, and we'll secretly film these assessments. This footage will later be reviewed by other doctors who don't know when you received the active treatment, helping us get unbiased results. The exact number of visits and the total duration aren't specified but will involve these assessment and treatment sessions.