08/28/2026
"Deep brain stimulation (DBS) has transformed the treatment of Parkinson’s disease (PD), where stimulating a precise node in the brain’s motor circuitry can stop a tremor in seconds. The FDA approved it for advanced PD in 2002. Seven years later, the agency authorized DBS for obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) under an effective humanitarian device exemption.
Researchers thought the next success story would come in treatment-resistant depression (TRD). "
Nearly a decade ago, a landmark trial of deep brain stimulation for depression failed to show efficacy. Now researchers are trying again, and the stakes are higher than ever.