Neuroscience
Please note: This is part four of a four-part series.
After suffering with Parkinson’s for five years, Steve Zabielski was fighting the symptoms that characterize the advanced stages of the disease. Medications no longer provided relief. He felt he had exhausted all of his options.
Then Steve met Gordon Baltuch, MD, one of the pioneers of Deep Brain Stimulation (DBS).
Dr. Baltuch immediately explained the benefits of a bilateral procedure, to activate parts of the brain that had grown inactive. Other medical centers might perform the surgery in two phases, but Dr. Baltuch advocated that there were more advantages to performing the entire surgery at one time.
Steve agreed to undergo the procedure as soon as possible.
“Two days after the procedure, the neuro-stimulators were powered up,” he recalls, blinking at the thought. “And my life changed.”
“I could focus. I could concentrate. I could eat. I could sleep. I could do all these things I hadn’t been able to do for years. I felt normal, for the first time in forever. I felt alive again.”
After putting up a brave front and showing the courage he felt he needed to demonstrate for years through his suffering, Steve looked up at his wife and mother who were in the room at that moment and broke down in tears.
“I was able to do and feel all these things, all these little things we all take for granted that I never thought I’d be able to do and feel again,” he says, staring out the window at a winter sunset. “Sleeping, eating, walking, talking. Just sitting there thinking about getting these things back, and having the luck and good fortune to have been able to have the operation, was very humbling.”
- Penn Neurosurgeon Leading The Way To Improve Memory
Gordon Baltuch, MDSteve Zabielski, who is battling Parkinson’s Disease, was having a difficult time managing his disease until Penn neurosurgeon, Gordon Baltuch, MD, a member of the research team, implanted a stimulator and electrodes in his brain to...
- Deep Brain Stimulation: The Journey Back To Normalcy
Please note: This is part three of a four-part series. For years, Steve had enjoyed an active and fulfilling life, traveling extensively, enjoying his career and family, and always doing something outdoors. After being diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease,...
- Deep Brain Stimulation: Battling Parkinson’s Disease
Please note: This is part one of a four-part series. There was something very important Steve Zabielski knew, which he decided not to share with his wife for the best of reasons. So he shielded her from the truth. For five years. “I just couldn’t...
- Dbs Patient To Appear On Woman’s Media Center Live
In recognition of Parkinson’s Awareness Month, Robin Morgan from Woman’s Media Center Live, will be interviewing Lori Katz, a patient of Gordon Baltuch, MD, Director of the Center for Functional and Restorative Neurosurgery. The interview will be...
- A Pioneer In The Use Of Deep Brain Stimulation
“Our mission is to innovate, to constantly find new answers. And no one is doing that better today than the people at Penn Medicine.” - Gordon Baltuch, MD The CallingMany people describe Gordon Baltuch, MD, Director of the Center for Functional and...
Neuroscience
Deep Brain Stimulation: The Immediate Benefits
Please note: This is part four of a four-part series.
After suffering with Parkinson’s for five years, Steve Zabielski was fighting the symptoms that characterize the advanced stages of the disease. Medications no longer provided relief. He felt he had exhausted all of his options.
Then Steve met Gordon Baltuch, MD, one of the pioneers of Deep Brain Stimulation (DBS).
Dr. Baltuch immediately explained the benefits of a bilateral procedure, to activate parts of the brain that had grown inactive. Other medical centers might perform the surgery in two phases, but Dr. Baltuch advocated that there were more advantages to performing the entire surgery at one time.
“Two days after the procedure, the neuro-stimulators were powered up,” he recalls, blinking at the thought. “And my life changed.”
“I could focus. I could concentrate. I could eat. I could sleep. I could do all these things I hadn’t been able to do for years. I felt normal, for the first time in forever. I felt alive again.”
After putting up a brave front and showing the courage he felt he needed to demonstrate for years through his suffering, Steve looked up at his wife and mother who were in the room at that moment and broke down in tears.
“I was able to do and feel all these things, all these little things we all take for granted that I never thought I’d be able to do and feel again,” he says, staring out the window at a winter sunset. “Sleeping, eating, walking, talking. Just sitting there thinking about getting these things back, and having the luck and good fortune to have been able to have the operation, was very humbling.”
Read the full story to find out what happened
after Steve’s epiphany.
after Steve’s epiphany.
- Penn Neurosurgeon Leading The Way To Improve Memory
Gordon Baltuch, MDSteve Zabielski, who is battling Parkinson’s Disease, was having a difficult time managing his disease until Penn neurosurgeon, Gordon Baltuch, MD, a member of the research team, implanted a stimulator and electrodes in his brain to...
- Deep Brain Stimulation: The Journey Back To Normalcy
Please note: This is part three of a four-part series. For years, Steve had enjoyed an active and fulfilling life, traveling extensively, enjoying his career and family, and always doing something outdoors. After being diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease,...
- Deep Brain Stimulation: Battling Parkinson’s Disease
Please note: This is part one of a four-part series. There was something very important Steve Zabielski knew, which he decided not to share with his wife for the best of reasons. So he shielded her from the truth. For five years. “I just couldn’t...
- Dbs Patient To Appear On Woman’s Media Center Live
In recognition of Parkinson’s Awareness Month, Robin Morgan from Woman’s Media Center Live, will be interviewing Lori Katz, a patient of Gordon Baltuch, MD, Director of the Center for Functional and Restorative Neurosurgery. The interview will be...
- A Pioneer In The Use Of Deep Brain Stimulation
“Our mission is to innovate, to constantly find new answers. And no one is doing that better today than the people at Penn Medicine.” - Gordon Baltuch, MD The CallingMany people describe Gordon Baltuch, MD, Director of the Center for Functional and...