Issue link: http://cp.revolio.com/i/244291
as Hebb began threading the spaghetti-like leads into the brain in search of the exact spot responsible for Schendzielos' symptoms. "We were listening to recordings of the brain activity in order to create a map of the brain so that the placement of these electrodes would be precise," Hebb says. "What she was hearing was the amplification of her brain signals. We use those brain signals to provide additional information over and above what we already have from MRI imaging of her brain. So we compare the imaging with the actual function of the brain." Schendzielos remembers doctors asking her what she was feeling. First it was pins and needles in her feet. Then one side of her face went numb and her tongue curled. "It was quite bizarre," says Schendzielos, who labeled the experience "remarkable." By talking to Schendzielos while performing stimulation, Hebb was assessing the best lead placement for the ultimate benefits. "We have the opportunity to customize the placement for the best results possible," he says. Big Results Once that "sweet spot," as her providers call it, is found and the stimulation is turned on, the results of the careful targeting become immediately apparent in the operating room. "Sierra said to try to touch her finger," Schendzielos recalls. "I held the tip of mine to hers without touching, and mine was perfectly steady. I could make a perfect spiral. I could draw a straight line. I could write my name, and you could read every single letter." Today, Schendzielos says she's 95 percent back to normal and that the team is quick to see her and fix any problems that arise. And she still makes that support group that started her journey a priority. "We share our struggles. We share our successes. It's so heartwarming." Although the technology treats only the movement-disorder aspect of a disease (for instance, the degenerative aspects of Parkinson's will continue to progress), it's still a miraculous medical treatment to provide, Hebb says. Giroux agrees, adding: "DBS does more than treat the symptoms. It sets the clock back, restoring functions that the patient had before other Dr. Adam Hebb and his surgical team manipulate leads while interacting with Gayle Schendzielos during DBS surgery. treatment." It also improves life by reducing side effects and reliance on life-altering drugs. Schendzielos is a believer. "I'm back to fly fishing. I'm back to playing cards. I'm back to doing glass. This year, I taught my granddaughter to sew. It was nothing short of a miracle for me. I had thought this was the way I was going to live the rest of my life - debilitated. On my first fishing trip after surgery, the entire family went. When I caught my first fish, the kids and I cried. I got my life back." Sky Ridge Surgeon Offers DBS Candidates Alternative Option Try keeping a steady hand while aiming a shotgun at a flushing pheasant that just made a startling jump at your feet. Or try sinking a golf ball into a distant hole with Tiger Woods' precision. Now, try doing it with Parkinson's disease. For Curtis Vogel, experiencing the joy of his favorite sports grew harder each year, as the tremor in his hand and the stiffness in his body from the disabling disease intensified. Only in his 50s, the Englewood resident wasn't ready to hang up the shotgun and throw in the golf towel. So, like 100,000 patients before him, Vogel underwent Deep Brain Stimulation, a surgery that has steadied the hands of people with movement disorders for more than a decade. But unlike those people, Vogel had the potentially life-altering procedure asleep. 30 Dr. David VanSickle of Sky Ridge Medical Center holds the pacemaker-like device that is implanted near a patient's collarbone during DBS surgery.