Deep Brain Stimulation to Improve Speech and Swallowing After Stroke

Grant Application

Primary Investigator: Jorge A. González-Martínez, MD, PhD

Proposed Innovation

Nearly 800,000 people suffer a stroke each year in the United States. Up to 52% of stroke survivors are diagnosed with dysarthria, or impaired speech, due to muscle weakness or paralysis. And approximately 15% experience lasting dysphagia, or difficulty swallowing. Effective treatments for chronic speech and swallowing impairments are limited, leaving patients and their families feeling underserved and frustrated.

This project will evaluate the effectiveness of deep brain stimulation (DBS) to restore and improve the ability of stroke patients to speak and swallow.

Improvements in Action

Neuromodulation therapy uses electrical currents or magnetic pulses to stimulate specific brain areas. Noninvasive techniques such as transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) and transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) have resulted in only moderate and short-lived improvements in stroke patients, especially those with severe impairments.

But researchers believe that DBS — a widely accepted treatment for movement disorders such as Parkinson’s disease and essential tremor — offers a more targeted and sustained treatment for dysarthria and dysphagia. This study will explore the use of continuous low-frequency DBS to the motor thalamus to help specific muscles in the face and esophagus function better.

Intended Outcomes

This project is expected to demonstrate that DBS targeting the motor thalamus — which plays a key role in speech and swallowing — can provide immediate and lasting improvements for stroke patients. Restoring natural speech and swallowing can enhance quality of life while helping to alleviate related social and economic challenges.