Stubborn symptoms are relieved for some OCD sufferers by deep brain stimulation.
Deep brain stimulation (DBS) involves the implantation of electrodes in specific areas of the brain. Electrical impulses from the electrodes regulate the brain’s signals, and can also alter brain chemistry.
Recent research reveals the positive effect of DBS on symptoms of OCD (obsessive-compulsive disorder) may be from an increase of dopamine triggered by DBS therapy. Dopamine is a neurotransmitter associated with our sense of pleasure, motivation, and reward.
DBS, OCD and Dopamine
The research was done with stable OCD outpatients who had been getting DBS therapy for more than a year:
- The participants’ brains were scanned for dopamine availability during a series of DBS treatments, eight days after the discontinuation of DBS, and again after DBS was resumed.
- At the time of each dopamine scan, the participants were interviewed about the type, frequency, and intensity of their OCD symptoms.
The participants in this study had not been helped by available prescription medications that stimulate the dopamine system. However, scans showed their dopamine levels were increased by DBS:
- During their series of treatments, the participants had higher levels of dopamine compared to healthy, non-OCD volunteers.
- When DBS was discontinued, dopamine levels dropped and the participants reported an increase of symptoms.
- When DBS was resumed, the increased symptoms were relieved within an hour.
Answers Spark More Questions
The investigators believe that DBS helped the OCD participants by compensating for a glitch in their brain’s dopamine system. The increase of dopamine clearly allowed them better control over obsessions and compulsions.
“It would be interesting to know whether the patients who do respond to...medications commonly prescribed for OCD symptoms have a different underlying disturbance in dopamine function than the patients enrolled in this study who failed to respond to these medications,” said Dr. Joh Krystal, Editor of the journal Biological Psychiatry.
Dr. Krystal points out that while dopamine availability may be a factor in all cases of OCD, people can have various types of dopamine dysfunction, each requiring a different treatment approach.
Source: Science Daily
Photo credit: A Health Blog
