Physicians Update Fall 201 3 Neurosurgery Issue Acoustic Neuroma p. 3 Deep-Brain Stimulation p. 4 Epilepsy p. 6 Pituitary Tumors p. 8 Endovascular Neurosurgery p. 10 Neurosurgery Deep-Brain-Stimulation Surgery Eases Symptoms for Patients with Some Movement Disorders Deep-brain stimulation (DBS) — the implantation of a “brain pacemaker” and electrodes to ease symptoms of movement disorders — is a safe and effective procedure that could bring symptomatic relief to many patients who are currently experiencing a severely impaired quality of life, says Nader Pouratian, MD, director of UCLA’s Neurosurgical Movement Disorders Program. “This is a technology that’s extremely underutilized,” says Dr. Pouratian. “When you consider the number of patients with movement disorders who aren’t benefiting from medication, it has the potential to help many more people.” DBS functions like a heart pacemaker, except that instead of going to the heart, the continued on p. 4