Theta Deep Brain Stimulation for Cognitive Enhancement in Parkinson's Disease

Cognitive impairment is common in Parkinson's disease. A recent study demonstrated 40% of people with PD suffer from mild cognitive impairment and > 80% of patients develop dementia after a disease duration of 20 years. Cognitive impairment significantly impairs quality of life and has limited treatment options. While the pathophysiology of cognitive symptoms in PD is multifactorial, one contributing factor is dysfunction in subthalamic-cortical loops.

The subthalamic nucleus (STN) receives input from distributed regions of the cortex, forming partially segregated parallel networks with sensorimotor regions, associative (cognitive) cortical regions, and limbic cortical regions. These subthalamic-cortical networks are thought to play a domain general role in inhibitory control, which is a fundamental mechanism underlying flexible behavior across motor, cognitive, and affective domains. Information processing in these subthalamic-cortical networks is expressed through oscillatory activity within distinct frequency bands. For example, communication between the STN and prefrontal regions involved in executive function is thought to occur through coherence in the theta (4-8 Hz) frequency band. As a result of these observations, stimulation of the STN at a theta frequency has been investigated as a method of modulating cognitive processes.

Theta stimulation of the STN has been shown to enhance coherence in subthalamic-cortical networks, facilitating information processing and modulating behavior. For example, a recent study demonstrated that theta stimulation of the STN improved working memory performance in PD subjects, while no effect was seen for other frequency bands. The authors performed a post-hoc analysis and found that the effect may be mediated by connectivity between the stimulated STN region and the right dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC). While these studies have demonstrated proof of principle, they are limited by small sample sizes and post-hoc analyses assessing the relationship between stimulation location and outcomes. Further research is needed to directly test the hypothesis that theta stimulation of the STN can improve executive control in PD patients by modulating associative STN circuitry.