Parkinson’s breakthrough as man ‘feels cured’ thanks to incredible new | UK | News

Scientists have made a stunning Parkinson’s disease breakthrough after a man fitted with an incredible new device said he feels “cured” of the brutal disease.

Kevin Hill, 65, was the first patient to be fitted with Brainsense, a groundbreaking new “adaptive” technology.

A year ago, surgeons from Newcastle Hospital installed an implant into Mr Halls’ brain. It is linked to a tiny computer in his chest that sends vital electrical signals.

An update to the device now means scientists can closely read the patient’s brain activity.

It means they can provide a much more tailored and personalised treatment, using his body signals to adapt and adjust to meet his needs on a potentially minute-by-minute basis.

Now, Mr Hill forgets about Parkinson’s “for days and days and days”, telling the BBC he feels “cured”.

The 65-year-old Sunderland resident first began feeling Parkinson’s symptoms in his forties, including shakes and trembling in his thumbs and later his arms and legs. He suffered countless sleepless nights and nightmares as a result.

Mr Hill did not receive a diagnosis until 2017. He was told there was no cure but was informed about a new treatment being trialed, known as deep brain stimulation (DBS)

He enrolled and had the rice grain-sized chip planted into his brain which links up to wires threading up to the back of his neck.

Mr Hill said his body tremors stopped “stopped instantly”, leaving his wife in disbelief.

He said: “Before the implant I suffered badly with tremors which affected my sleep and gave me terrible pains in my shoulders, arms and legs. It also affected me mentally – I became really self-conscious and withdrew from socialising or seeing other people.

“The medication I was on wasn’t really working and I also had to give up my job.When I was referred for deep brain stimulation, I was told it could take a while to have an impact but I had a great response and the improvement was instant.”

Now, Mr Hill is even back on his bike, seeing friends and playing snooker.

He added: “To know that I’m going to benefit even more from having the latest version of the technology is just fantastic.”

The technology was developed by Medtronic, a company which specialises in developing technology solutions for complex health conditions.

Amaza Reitmeier, vice president, Neuromodulation marketing and strategy at Medtronic, said: “Medtronic remains the only company in the world to offer a complete sensing-enabled deep brain stimulation system, and now we have enhanced this innovation to allow patients with Parkinson’s to spend less time thinking about their disease.”

Around 153,000 people in the UK are living with Parkinson’s disease, a progressive neurological disorder affecting the brain and nervous system, in particular movement and balance.

This number is expected to soar in coming years due to population growth and ageing.

According to the NHS, symptoms include:

• Symptoms can be life-changing or life-limiting and include:
• Tremors or involuntary shaking in the hands, arms, legs or head.
• Muscle and joint stiffness and tension, making it hard to move around and which can cause pain.
• Impaired balance and coordination, slowness of movement.
• Loss of smell and digestive problems.
• Sleep disturbance and issues.
• Mental health problems.