1. What is your favorite part about neuromodulation work?
One of my favorite things about neuromodulation work is that it's challenging. And the fact that it can, at times, have profound effects yet we've likely only seen the tip of the iceberg.
2. What is your favorite kind of neuromodulation technique and/or equipment and why?
Closed-loop neuromodulation. Identifying and attempting to interfere with or correct problematic activity, in real-time, is a widely used technique in many fields. Employing that in the brain is extremely challenging but has substantial potential so even small steps feel like big wins.
3. What kind of conditions do you treat with neuromodulation?
Movement Disorders: primarily Parkinson's disease, dystonia, and essential tremor.
4. Any sparks of inspiration you would like to share?
After being treated with deep brain stimulation, hearing a PD patient talk about feeling 10 or 20 years younger, a wheel-chair bound child with dystonia walking again, or seeing the emotion of a patient with essential tremor when they write their name legibly for the first time in 30 years, will never get old. Each success case provides endless inspiration to keep going and each challenging case provides inspiration for us to do better.
5. What is your favorite part of the brain and why?
Not sure I have a favorite part of the brain, but my favorite thing about the brain is the fact that our own brains communicate in a way that is yet too complex to completely understand. Which means we have so much more to learn about how our own brains operate.
6. Any exciting news or breakthroughs you'd like to share regarding your neuromodulation work?
The exciting thing about neuromodulation is that you are always on the cusp of doing something great or novel. Recognizing it, interpreting the language, and repeating the results is the hard part.
