Craig van Horne, MD, and his colleagues at Lexington-based University of Kentucky Brain Restoration Center, performed the first deep brain stimulation at The First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University in Henan, China.
Here are five things to know:
1. Dr. van Horne treated a patient who suffered from Parkinson's disease. Following the surgery, Dr. van Horne visited the patient who recovered and was released a few days after the procedure.
2. The surgery was to expand the scope of neurosurgery in China. The First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University has since grown its deep brain stimulation surgery program with physicians at the hospital performing deep brain stimulations surgeries regularly.
3. Zhengzhou University's hospital is the world's largest hospital with more than 7,000 beds.
4. Dr. van Horne's team included:
• Greg Gerhardt, PhD, director of the center for microelectrode technology
• Ann Hanley, program director for neurorestoration
• George Quintero, PhD, research analyst and neurophysiologist
5. UK and The First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University hope to continue collaborating between research fellows.