Individuals who are patients of anxiety disorders such as obsessive compulsive disorder would feel woebegone when they come to know that different types of treatments have not been able to produce desired results. Such patients can get help from a stereotactic radiotherapy referred to as radio surgery. Dr Douglas Kondziolka and other members of the Pittsburgh University have termed this therapy as successful therapy especially in patients who have had severe problems of Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD).
The process of therapy can be used as an alternative for other types of treatments in cases that are quite difficult to treat. Despite the need of study needed for this treatment, it has been used widely and has provided good results. The patients on which this treatment was first tested were a male and two females who were suffering from severe condition of this Anxiety Disorder. Two patients out of these three were found to be having 39 out of 40 points on the severe condition scale of OCD.
Even after a number of medicines, the diseased were found to be having same condition as they were having earlier. After being disappointed with other types of treatment they decided to undergo the sterotactic radiotherapy. In the therapy, ‘gamma knife’, a special instrument provides rays that are projected on portions of the brain which are the major causes of OCD.
Extreme care was taken in implementation of the treatment. The therapy had to be carried out only after the patients had qualified for sever OCD condition and only after it was suggested by a minimum of two mental health professionals.Another study recommends the usage of electrodes which can encourage the treatment in to the areas of brain which are anti-treatable by other forms of therapy which usually happens with people suffering from severe stage of OCD. Cognitive behavioural therapy and usage of medicines are two forms of treatments of OCD that are currently in practice.50 percent of the victims who underwent this therapy saw positive results and the severity of OCD were reduced almost from 40 to 60 percent on average. Only 10% of victims were found to have been resistant to this treatment and their condition remained same.
Damiaan Denys from Amsterdam University and other members tested effects of the treatment on brain of 16 victims of OCD whose condition was unchanged after a number of treatment sessions.Study was done in three steps. First step was to plant electrodes and after that patients underwent active stimulation for eight months after which they were tested for OCD symptoms every two weeks.