Surgical interventions have been employed to alleviate symptoms of Parkinson’s disease (PD) for decades, with improving success. One such treatment has been pallidotomy, the lesioning of a portion of the globus pallidus. Early pallidotomy procedures have paved the way for more accurately targeted methods. Technological advancements in imaging and targeting have made modern pallidotomy a safe and well-tested means of treating PD patients that has reliably positive results. Numerous group studies in recent years have demonstrated effective relief of PD symptoms, and the neuroanatomical and physiological aspects which underlie its effects are being elucidated as well. Recent descriptions of pallidotomy as an experimental procedure must therefore be considered in light of these reports. This review will examine the development of the pallidotomy procedure and the neuroanatomical rationale which underlies it, and discuss recent studies of its efficacy in PD patients.

Keywords:
Parkinson’s disease, Globus pallidus, Pallidotomy, Basal ganglia, Experimental
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1998
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