System and method for brain stimulation for improvement of motor symptoms in parkinson's disease and other movement disorders

Abstract

An embodiment in accordance with the present invention is directed to a system and device for applying electrical direct current transcranially to the brain that is combined with a behavioral activity consisting of an isometric force production task. The device is non-invasive or implantable and serves to improve motor symptoms in Parkinson's disease (PD) and other movement disorders. During the stimulation, the patient is engaged in a behavioral task using a system consisting of two force transducers and a controller. The patient holds the transducers, one in each hand, and is engaged in a task that requires the brain to assign forces to each arm so that the sum of the forces matches an instructed amount. In an electrode placement specifically for PD, bilateral primary motor cortices are simultaneously stimulated according to a specific algorithm that depends on the forces that the PD affected individual produces in the behavioral task.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A system for treatment of Parkinson's disease in a subject comprising:
 a controller;   a force transducer component configured to accept force from a left hand of the subject and a right hand of the subject, wherein the force transducer component is configured to transmit data related to the accepted force to the controller, and wherein the force transducer component is configured to receive instructions from the controller regarding a predetermined force value that the subject is asked to create;   a controller that uses the measured forces to compute a laterality index; and   a transcranial direct current stimulation component configured to apply transcranial direct stimulation to motor cortices of the subject according to the laterality index, wherein for a subject with a negative laterality index, anodal stimulation is applied to the right motor cortex, and cathodal stimulation is applied to the left motor cortex, and for a subject with a positive laterality index, anodal stimulation is applied over the left motor cortex, and cathodal stimulation is applied to the right motor cortex.   
     
     
         2 . The system of  claim 1  further comprising a display screen for the force transducer component such that the subject can visualize the force to be applied to the transducers. 
     
     
         3 . The system of  claim 1  wherein the transcranial direct current stimulation component comprises a headband for positioning the anode and the cathode and holding the transcranial direct current stimulation component on a head of the subject. 
     
     
         4 . The system of  claim 1  wherein communication between the transcranial direct current stimulation component and the controller is wireless. 
     
     
         5 . The system of  claim 1  wherein the controller comprises a computing device. 
     
     
         6 . The system of  claim 5  wherein the computing device comprises a non-transitory computer readable medium. 
     
     
         7 . The system of  claim 6  wherein the non-transitory computer readable medium is programmed to integrate the force transduction component and the transcranial direct stimulation component. 
     
     
         8 . A method for treatment of Parkinson's disease in a subject comprising:
 soliciting the subject to apply force to a force transduction component with right and left hands;   receiving data regarding the applied force;   applying transcranial direct current stimulation with an anode over a motor cortex of the subject associated with a hemisphere of a brain of the subject that is less affected by the Parkinson's disease and with a cathode over a second motor cortex of the subject associated with a hemisphere of the brain of the subject that is more affected by the Parkinson's disease; and   integrating the data regarding the applied force with the transcranial direct current stimulation.   
     
     
         9 . The method for treatment of  claim 8  wherein the method is executed by a non-transitory computer readable medium. 
     
     
         10 . The method of  claim 8  further comprising displaying a force to be applied to the force transduction component to the subject. 
     
     
         11 . A system for applying electrical current to the brain transcranially, comprising:
 a transdermally implantable component, wherein the transdermally implantable component includes a stimulator having a cathode and an anode, wherein the cathode and anode are configured to provide a unifocal stimulation to a target area of the brain, wherein the transdermally implantable component includes a power transceiver module configured for receiving power and for receiving and transmitting data, and wherein the transdermally implantable component includes a dose controller for managing the stimulation provided to the target area of the brain;   a main external component comprising a power and data transducer for providing power and data to the power transceiver module of the transdermally implantable component and a dose monitor and input module for changing and transmitting dosages for stimulation of the target area of the brain.   
     
     
         12 . The system of  claim 1  further comprising a battery for providing power to the power and data transducer. 
     
     
         13 . The system of  claim 2  wherein the battery is rechargeable and the system includes a recharging module. 
     
     
         14 . The system of  claim 1  further comprising four cathodes. 
     
     
         15 . The system of  claim 1  further comprising one anode. 
     
     
         16 . The system of  claim 1  further comprising a ring shaped configuration of the cathode around the anode. 
     
     
         17 . The system of  claim 1  further comprising a user interface. 
     
     
         18 . The system of  claim 1  further comprising a computer. 
     
     
         19 . The system of  claim 8  wherein the computer is configured to communicate with the external main component. 
     
     
         20 . The system of  claim 9  wherein the computer is configured to communicate with the external main component regarding dosing for the stimulation. 
     
     
         21 . The system of  claim 6  wherein a radius of the ring shaped configuration around the anode is related to focality of treatment.