Safety of Prefrontal Cortex Biopsies During Deep Brain Stimulation Procedures

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Molecular Biology
• Surgical Innovation

Background:

• Studying living human brain biology is crucial but limited by safe sampling methods.
• The Living Brain Project (LBP) developed a novel prefrontal cortex (PFC) biopsy technique.
• This biopsy is performed during deep brain stimulation (DBS) lead placement.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the safety of PFC biopsies during DBS procedures.
• To establish a safe method for obtaining living human brain tissue for research.

Main Methods:

• Compared acute adverse events (infection, intracranial hemorrhage, seizures) in 652 patients undergoing DBS with PFC biopsy versus 500 patients without.
• Assessed cognitive health changes in 144 patients at baseline and 1 year post-surgery.
• Analyzed adverse event rates and cognitive changes between the biopsy and nonbiopsy groups.

Main Results:

• No infections were reported in either group.
• Intracranial hemorrhage rates were comparable (1.7% biopsy vs. 1.4% nonbiopsy; P=.88).
• Seizure rates were also similar (0.2% biopsy vs. 0.4% nonbiopsy; P=.82), with no significant cognitive changes observed.

Conclusions:

• PFC biopsies during DBS exhibit a safety profile comparable to DBS procedures without biopsies.
• This technique provides a viable approach for studying living human brain tissue.
• The LBP method supports advancing molecular biology research on the living human brain.