GRAND JUNCTION, Colo. (KREX) — “If you live in Grand Junction, or imagine someone living in Gypsum just down the road, it’s hard enough to get to Grand Junction, especially if you’re a little bit older,”Medical Director of Denver DBS Center, Dr. David Vansickle said.

Deep brain stimulation surgery has been around since 1987. Its essentially two electrodes that start at the surface of the brain and go down into the brain.

Vansickle attested, “Then is usually has a wire that goes underneath the skin all the way down to the chest area or sometimes the abdomen area.”

Think of it as a pacemaker.

“And it sends pulses to the brain, and that inhibits the brain from overreacting in a particular area where its implanted,” Dr. Vansickle mentioned.

The treatment helps cure parkinsons disease, essential tremor, helps with ocd, and a dystonia disease. dr van sickle says its a pretty safe procedure.

Dr. Vansickle uttered, “But once the system is in up safe and running, the likelihood of something bad happening to you from the system. its shockingly low.”

Remote programming is the new way for dbs device, especially in rural areas.

“This allows your neurologist to actually modify your device, program your device over what appears to be a zoom call, although its all encrypted and secure. So you can have a visit with your neurologist even with your DBS device, and not be in the same time zone,” Dr. Vansickle added.

Robotic-Guided asleep DBS is also a major new innovation Dr. Vansickle was the first in the world to perform it which improves the accuracy of the implant and changes the game.

Dr. Vansickle stated,”The surgery can be done quickly, precisely, with more lower complication rates, and its much easier on the patient, because you just go to sleep and wake up and your electrodes are in. That is changing the surgery in the entire country.”

Dr. Vansickle recommends if you get the surgery get it done as early as you can in the disease or condition process, to help treat the disease.