TPS-THERAPY

In the course of the many years of research and development into the use of shock waves for neurophysiological diseases, which began back in the 1990s, Parkinson’s disease was one of the first indications to be researched and treated in a clinical setting using Transcranial Pulse Stimulation (TPS), which was still being developed at the time.

As a result, there has long been an encouraging and reliable body of data on Parkinson’s disease in particular – in some cases with long-term observations of patients who have been treated with TPS at regular intervals for over 12 years as part of clinical observation. Accordingly, a whole range of clinics and practices have long been treating patients with Parkinson’s with TPS – albeit still within the framework of so-called “off-label” therapy.

However, as the prevalence figures for Alzheimer’s dementia and other forms of dementia are much higher than for Parkinson’s, the number of studies on TPS logically concentrated initially on the Alzheimer’s indication. This is now being followed by Parkinson’s – and other indications such as depression, fatigue, autism and ADHD (attention deficit hyperactivity disorder).

Parkinson’s: science attests to the effectiveness and safety of TPS in equal measure

The Medical University of Vienna has been researching TPS for Parkinson’s disease for several years. In a first study publication on this indication, the Viennese researchers have now scientifically proven what has long been known to doctors working with TPS and many patients:

The results presented support and expand the understanding of the safety and efficacy profile of TPS in the treatment of neurodegenerative diseases such as Parkinson’s disease and TPS is attested to have a high potential for efficacy as an additional therapy. The disease status of the study subjects improved significantly and there were no clinically relevant side effects.

The scientists also consider the possible placebo effect to be unlikely in view of the clear patterns and frequency of motor improvements in the study (which is also the case in studies on other indications).

These study results, together with other clinical data, underline the potential of Transcranial Pulse Stimulation (TPS) to develop into a novel complementary neuromodulation therapy, according to the Viennese researchers.

Survey confirms study data: High efficacy attested

In a survey carried out last year at 11 clinics and practices on TPS for Parkinson’s, colleagues also came to the conclusion that such positive results urgently need to be followed up.

The result of the survey was that most of the 39 documented Parkinson’s patients treated with TPS showed clear improvements: 6 patients experienced very strong improvements, 18 strong improvements (including 11 with moderate and 5 with severe Parkinson’s) and 7 good improvements. No change was seen in only 6 cases, and in 2 the disease progressed despite treatment (note: these are remarkable and exceptional results in the field of therapy in general).

Overall, around 80% of patients benefited from TPS treatment, without any significant side effects. This underlines the effectiveness of TPS as a treatment option for Parkinson’s and the need for further research.

Further information on the first Parkinson’s study can be found here: Effectiveness of TPS for Parkinson’s proven by study and the conditions under which we treat patients with Parkinson’s in practice can be found here: TPS-Therapy for Parkinson’s disease.

We are delighted with these study results, which will now make it easier for patients with Parkinson’s to be treated effectively and safely with TPS.

Your Prof. Musa Citak, M.D.