Targeting based on patient-specific 7 Tesla MRI connectivity analysis improves deep brain stimulation for Parkinson’s disease
Yarit Wiggerts, Rick Schuurman, Rob M. A. de Bie, Martijn Beudel, Wietske van der Zwaag, Pepijn van den Munckhof, Maarten Bot · 2026
Read Targeting based on patient-specific 7 Tesla MRI connectivity analysis improves deep brain stimulation for Parkinson’s disease by Yarit Wiggerts, Rick Schuurman, Rob M. A. de Bie, Martijn Beudel, Wietske van der Zwaag, Pepijn van den Munckhof, Maarten Bot (2026) in the Tower of Babel, a free online library of public-domain works preserved in clean, searchable text. No sign-up. The full text is served as a plain-text file at a predictable URL, where text is present: https://antarctic-labs.com/tower-of-babel/pmc-13280210.txt.
Description
Yarit Wiggerts and colleagues published a 2026 study testing whether planning deep brain stimulation with each Parkinson's patient's brain wiring improves motor outcomes. Stimulation of the subthalamic nucleus helps many patients, but benefit varies and electrode placement is usually guided by standard landmarks. For 102 patients, surgeons used ultra-high-field 7 Tesla MRI tractography to map how each person's target nucleus connects to motor cortex. They then aimed the leads at that individual motor subdivision. Outcomes were compared with 118 matched patients planned by classical landmarks.
On a motor rating scale, the connectivity-guided group improved by 56 percent on average against 50 percent for controls, a significant gap. The share achieving an optimal response was higher, 96 percent against 86 percent. Leads landing inside the mapped motor subdivision did best of all, averaging 60 percent improvement. The authors present patient-specific connectivity as a biomarker for implantation, usable in routine care, not only research.
Catalog record
| CREATOR | Yarit Wiggerts, Rick Schuurman, Rob M. A. de Bie, Martijn Beudel, Wietske van der Zwaag, Pepijn van den Munckhof, Maarten Bot |
|---|---|
| YEAR | 2026 |
| COLLECTION | PAPERS |
| FORMAT | TXT |
| FILE SIZE | 62 KB |
| VERSION | 1.0 |
| LICENSE | CC BY 4.0 |
| RIGHTS | CC BY |
| SOURCE | Europe PMC |