Movement Disorders - Stanford Hospital & Clinics - Stanford University Medical Center

Movement Disorders

Location:	Stanford Hospital 300 Pasteur Drive Stanford, CA View a map

Room/Suite:	A301

Mailing Address:	300 Pasteur Drive Stanford, CA 94305

Contact Phone:	(650) 723-6469

Fax Number:	(650) 725-0390

Days and Hours:	Monday-Friday 8:30 am - 8:30 am

The medical faculty and staff of Stanford's Movement Disorders Clinic provide innovative surgical treatments for movement disorders such as Parkinson's disease, dystonia, spasticity, and essential tremor.

Faculty Physicians

Helen M. Bronte-Stewart, MD, MSE (Neurologist)
Jaime M. Henderson, MD, (Neurosurgery)
Terry Sanger, MD, PhD (Pediatric Neurologist)

Movement disorders are common and can be seen as one isolated symptom or can be part of specific neurological conditions. These include Parkinson's Disease, Essential Tremor, Dystonia, Multiple System Atrophy, Progressive Supranuclear Palsy (PSP), Huntingdon's Disease, Restless Legs Syndrome, Spasticity, Tourette Syndrome, Tic disorders, Myoclonus, Ataxia, Wilson's Disease and others. For each Movement Disorders a detailed evaluation, patient education, and specific treatment options are available and are offered at Stanford Movement Disorders Clinic.

Deep Brain Stimulation (DBS)

At the SMDC we have a strong interest in DBS and have developed significant expertise in this area in clinical practice and in research. Over 100 procedures have been done at Stanford. Deep Brain Stimulation is a new form of treatment for Movement Disorders, where a neuropacemaker is implanted in one of several sites in the Basal Ganglia. Continuous, high frequency electrical pulses are emitted from the implanted electrode and set up a field of stimulation in the brain, a few millimeters in diameter. A lead (under the skin) connects the electrode to the pacemaker battery, which is placed below the collar bone. The electrode and pacemaker are manufactured by Medtronic Inc (Minnesota), who also make cardiac pacemakers.

Micro Electrode-guided Surgery for Movement Disorders

Physicians within our Functional Neurosurgery program have performed more than a hundred microelectrode-guided pallidotomies, thalamotomies, and thalamic deep-brain stimulator implantations over the past three years. Intraoperative single-cell recordings allow precise definition of targets for these surgical approaches to treating movement disorders. The recordings not only define targets for ablation or stimulation but also help identify structures to avoid. This technique, in conjunction with advanced imaging systems, optimizes our patients' clinical outcomes.

We collaborate with Stanford's Image Guidance Laboratories, whose research in surgical navigation provides state-of-the-art tools for these procedures.