A cohort study evaluated the technical feasibility of the DBSgram framework in 18 Parkinson's disease patients implanted with sensing-enabled deep brain stimulation (DBS) systems. The framework integrates subthalamic nucleus local field potential recordings with wearable inertial measurement unit kinematic data during DBS programming sessions within a clinical titration protocol. No comparator group was reported.
The study demonstrated technical feasibility of integrating implanted neurophysiological recordings with wearable kinematic sensing. DBSgram visualizations captured stimulation-dependent suppression of pathological beta activity and quantitative motor improvements. No specific effect sizes, absolute numbers, p-values, or confidence intervals were reported for these outcomes. No primary or secondary outcomes were specified.
Safety and tolerability data were not reported, including adverse events, serious adverse events, or discontinuations. The study did not report follow-up duration, funding sources, or conflicts of interest. Key limitations include the small sample size, absence of comparative effectiveness data, and lack of reported clinical outcomes beyond feasibility demonstration.
This proof-of-concept study suggests the DBSgram framework may support more objective, data-driven DBS titration and could contribute to future closed-loop neuromodulation strategies. However, its clinical utility remains unproven without comparative effectiveness data or validated links to patient-centered outcomes.
View Original Abstract ↓
Deep Brain Stimulation (DBS) is an effective therapy for Parkinson's disease (PD), but clinical programming of stimulation parameters remains a time-consuming process largely guided by subjective symptom assessment. The increasing availability of sensing-enabled neurostimulators and wearable motion sensors provides an opportunity to introduce objective biomarkers into DBS titration. In this work, we present DBSgram, a multimodal framework designed to support data-driven DBS programming by integrating neurophysiological and kinematic measurements acquired during routine clinical titration. The proposed system combines subthalamic nucleus local field potential (STN-LFP) recordings from sensing-enabled neurostimulators with hand kinematic data acquired using wearable inertial measurement units (IMUs). A two-stage synchronization strategy aligns independent data streams from implanted and wearable devices, followed by automated signal processing pipelines for extracting electrophysiological and motor biomarkers. Patient-specific beta-band power is derived from LFP recordings, while tremor, rigidity, and bradykinesia metrics are computed from multi-axis IMU signals using symptom-specific processing algorithms. These synchronized features are then integrated into the DBSgram visualization framework, which maps stimulation amplitude to simultaneous changes in neural activity and objective motor performance. The framework was implemented in a standardized 40-minute clinical titration protocol conducted in a cohort of 18 PD patients implanted with sensing-enabled DBS systems. We present here the analysis of aligned multimodal datasets from different patients to demonstrate proof-of-concept feasibility. The resulting DBSgram visualizations capture stimulation-dependent suppression of pathological beta activity alongside quantitative motor improvements, enabling intuitive identification of patient-specific therapeutic windows. These results demonstrate the technical feasibility of integrating implanted neurophysiological recordings with wearable kinematic sensing during DBS programming. By providing synchronized physiological and motor biomarkers within a unified framework, the DBSgram approach may support more objective and data-driven DBS titration, and contribute to future closed-loop neuromodulation strategies.