# Augmented Reality Platform for Deep Brain Stimulation

> **NIH NIH R01** · CASE WESTERN RESERVE UNIVERSITY · 2020 · $462,017

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY
 Subthalamic deep brain stimulation (DBS) for the treatment of Parkinson's disease (PD) can be highly
effective at improving motor symptoms and enhancing the patient's quality of life. However, the specific details
of the anatomical target(s) for therapeutic stimulation remain unresolved. Recent DBS surgical targeting
hypotheses have evolved to consider that direct stimulation of specific axonal pathways within the subthalamic
region may be linked to the control of specific symptoms. Unfortunately, 3D anatomical characterization of the
wide array of different axonal pathways in the human subthalamic region is very limited and techniques to
visualize the complex neuroanatomy currently focus on 2D computer screens. These limitations hinder our
ability to create accurate models and interpret the effects of DBS. Therefore, we propose that significant need
exists for an anatomically driven model of subthalamic axonal pathways that can be interactively visualized
with holographic 3D imaging and coupled to patient-specific DBS simulations.
 The goal of this Bioengineering Research Grant (PAR-16-242) is to create next generation visualization
tools and surgical targeting models for clinical DBS. The first step of this study will rely on direct input from a
collection of world experts in basal ganglia neuroanatomy to help us build a virtual 3D atlas model of 8 different
axonal pathways in the subthalamic region. This development will occur within the HoloLens augmented
reality (AR) environment, thereby enabling face-to-face discussion among the anatomy experts while
visualizing the model hologram and its interactive adjustment. The second step of this study will evaluate the
ability of various tractography algorithms to recreate the pathways described by the anatomy experts. We
hypothesize that tractography will fail to accurately capture the anatomical trajectory of most subthalamic
axonal pathways without extensive modeling constraints. Results from this analysis will have important
implications for the rapid growth of tractography in DBS research, as well as clinical practice. Finally, we will
translate our subthalamic axonal pathway model system into an interactive HoloLens AR application that works
in concert with patient-specific MRI datasets and DBS pathway-activation modeling. We propose that such a
tool will be especially useful for DBS surgical education and research investigation.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 9893938
- **Project number:** 5R01NS105690-03
- **Recipient organization:** CASE WESTERN RESERVE UNIVERSITY
- **Principal Investigator:** Mark Griswold
- **Activity code:** R01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $462,017
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2018-04-01 → 2022-03-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/9893938

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 9893938, Augmented Reality Platform for Deep Brain Stimulation (5R01NS105690-03). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-24 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/9893938. Licensed CC0.

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