Medicines helped. Then they stopped. Now you’re hearing about DBS and wondering, is this real, or just the next thing someone’s trying?
Ask me directly. I’ll tell you.
Dr. Gurneet Singh Sawhney—MCh Neurosurgery, Fellowship in Functional Neurosurgery & Epilepsy Surgery, Japan is among the most experienced neurosurgeons in Mumbai for Deep Brain Stimulation, practicing at Fortis Hospital, Mulund West. Over 18 years, more than 70% of his Parkinson’s patients reported significant motor improvement within three months of DBS.
What Does DBS Do, and When Does It Actually Work?
Almost every family who walks into my clinic has the same idea: DBS is the last option. Typically, people view DBS as a final option only after exhausting all other options.
That’s wrong. This misconception leads to excessive waiting periods.
DBS surgery works best when medication is still doing something, but the beneficial hours keep shrinking, the off periods hit harder, and no dose adjustment fixes it anymore. That’s the moment. Not when things collapse. Before they do.
We place hair-thin electrodes into a precise region of the brain and send electrical pulses that cut off the signals behind tremors and freezing. Not a cure. An override. And for the right patient, it gives back what was quietly disappearing.
Well-selected patients see a 50–60% improvement in motor symptoms. When someone can’t button a shirt, that number isn’t abstract.
|
Medication |
DBS Surgery |
|
|
Best for |
Early-stage, stable symptoms |
Mid-stage with fluctuations |
|
Symptom control |
Fades over time |
Consistent, adjustable |
|
Recovery |
None |
2 to 4 weeks |
The Signs That Mean Stop Waiting
I’ve had too many conversations with families who came two years after they should have. They weren’t careless they were hopeful. But hope and timing aren’t the same thing.
If any of these sound familiar, don’t wait for the next appointment:
-
Wearing-off between doses—relief from each tablet lasting shorter than it used to
-
Dyskinesia—involuntary movements that are the medication’s toll, not the disease
-
Tremor tablets never touched—some tremors don’t respond to medicine; DBS goes to the source
-
Freezing with falls—feet locking mid-step without warning, every time a danger
-
Life is getting smaller—work, independence, ordinary things slipping away quietly
One of these is enough. Come in.
Why Do Patients Across India Trust Dr. Gurneet Singh Sawhney?
I turn patients away. Not often but when DBS isn’t right for someone, I say it clearly, even if they’ve flown in from another city.
That’s how I protect the ones it is right for.
I went to Japan to train in functional neurosurgery because that’s genuinely where the expertise was. Not for the certificate. I wanted to learn from individuals who had dedicated their careers to this field. I came back to Fortis Mulund, and eighteen years later watching someone walk out who came in unable to walk it still doesn’t feel ordinary.
-
Qualification: MCh Neurosurgery | Fellowship—Functional Neurosurgery & Epilepsy Surgery, Japan
-
Experience: 18 years | Fortis Hospital, Mulund West, Mumbai
-
Recognition: Top Neurosurgeons in Mumbai, India Today, 2020
FAQs
Q: Is DBS safe for elderly Parkinson’s patients?
A: Age isn’t what I look at first; cognitive health is. I’ve done this surgery on patients in their mid-seventies who recovered beautifully. The evaluation is what matters, not the age on the form.
Q: What does recovery actually look like?
A: Home in 3 to 5 days. You can resume light activity in approximately two weeks. The stimulator gets adjusted over the following months, and honestly, that’s when the real difference shows up, as these adjustments help to optimize the treatment in response to the progression of Parkinson’s disease.
Q: Will DBS (Deep Brain Stimulation) stop working as Parkinson’s progresses? A: It doesn’t stop; the settings move with the disease. Most patients hold onto meaningful improvement for a decade or more.
A: It doesn’t stop the settings from moving with the disease. Most patients hold onto meaningful improvement for a decade or more. That’s not a guarantee, but it’s what the evidence shows and what I see.
If the tremors aren’t stopping and the medications aren’t enough, talk to Mumbai’s leading DBS neurosurgeon today.
📞 +91 8104310753 | 📧 gurneetsawhney@gmail.com | 📍 Book a DBS consultation at drgurneetsawhney.com
Dr. Gurneet Singh Sawhney MCh Neurosurgery | Fellowship in Functional Neurosurgery & Epilepsy Surgery, Japan 18 Years | Fortis Hospital, Mulund West, Mumbai Top Neurosurgeons in Mumbai India Today Magazine, 2020