MRI-Guided Focused Ultrasound Improves Motor Symptoms in Parkinson’s Disease

Parkinson’s disease is a progressive neurological disorder that can cause tremor, muscle stiffness, slowed movement and medication-related involuntary movements. These symptoms can limit daily function even when tremor is not the dominant complaint. Medications are often used first, while some patients undergo deep brain stimulation with implanted electrodes. To help address this broader symptom burden, Henry Ford Health has expanded access to high-intensity focused ultrasound for qualified Parkinson’s disease patients.

Henry Ford Health (Detroit, MI, USA) is now offering high-intensity focused ultrasound, or HIFU, to selected patients with Parkinson’s disease who have symptoms beyond tremor. The program was launched in October 2025 at Henry Ford Hospital in Detroit for essential tremor and tremor-dominant Parkinson’s disease. It has since completed more than 100 procedures. The expanded use includes patients with muscle stiffness, slowed movement and dyskinesia, which can develop as a side effect of Parkinson’s medication.

HIFU is performed without incisions, implanted hardware or general anesthesia. Patients remain awake during the procedure inside the magnetic resonance imaging suite. Under MRI guidance, neurosurgeons focus ultrasound energy on precise targets deep in the brain that are responsible for specific motor symptoms. Patients are assessed between applications to monitor response, and most procedures take about 2.5 hours. Patients typically return home the same day.

Evidence cited by Henry Ford Health includes studies showing significant long-term tremor reductions after HIFU in patients with essential tremor and Parkinson’s disease. Research has also shown benefit in Parkinson’s disease patients with symptoms beyond tremor. In a manufacturer-sponsored clinical study, patients treated on both sides of the brain had an average 68% improvement in medication-related motor fluctuations and dyskinesia.

Because HIFU is performed on one side of the brain at a time, second-side treatment is staged. Patients must wait at least six to nine months before the opposite side is treated, depending on the condition. Patients interested in the treatment undergo comprehensive evaluation to determine whether they are appropriate candidates.

“Many people associate Parkinson's disease with tremor because it’s often the most visible symptom, but patients frequently experience other symptoms that can have just as much impact on their daily lives. HIFU gives patients another option for managing their symptoms and staying engaged in the activities that matter most to them,” said Dr. Danika Paulo, a neurosurgeon at Henry Ford Health who specializes in HIFU.

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