Health
Music conductor with Parkinson’s sees symptoms improve with deep brain stimulation
An Ohio music conductor is using deep brain stimulation to combat his Parkinson’s disease.
Rand Laycock, 70, the director and conductor of a symphony orchestra, was diagnosed just before his 60th birthday, according to a press release from Cleveland Clinic.
“My doctor at the time told me [a Parkinson’s diagnosis] wasn’t a death sentence, and there would be advancements over the next few years to help with my treatment,” said Laycock.
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Even after a regimen of medications, however, Laycock’s symptoms continued to progress over the next 11 years.
Rand Laycock (pictured), a symphony orchestra conductor, was diagnosed with Parkinson’s nearly 11 years ago, just before his 60th birthday. (Cleveland Clinic)
When tremors in his right hand began increasing in severity and frequency, he began exploring other treatments.
“The tremor would really start to be pronounced if I had a deadline coming up for something with the orchestra,” Laycock told Cleveland Clinic.
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He also started experiencing dyskinesias, which are involuntary movements that can be a side effect of long-term use of certain Parkinson’s medications.
Michal Gostkowski, DO, a neurologist at Cleveland Clinic, introduced Laycock to the alternative option of deep brain stimulation (DBS), which was described as a “pacemaker for the brain.”
“My doctor at the time told me [a Parkinson’s diagnosis] wasn’t a death sentence, and there would be advancements over the next few years to help with my treatment,” Laycock told Cleveland Clinic. (Cleveland Clinic)
DBS is a “treatment that involves an implanted device that delivers an electrical current directly to areas of your brain,” according to Cleveland Clinic.
There are billions of neurons in the brain, which communicate using electrical and chemical signals. Some brain conditions, including Parkinson’s, can make those neurons less active, the same source stated.
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Deep brain stimulation applies an electrical current to make those neurons more active.
In May 2024, Laycock received a brain implant as the first step of the DBS therapy. He then activated and set up his device with programmer Erica Hennigs, the release detailed.
“I know the thought of brain surgery can be intimidating, but it’s a life-changing procedure that allows you to become your own self again.”
“When it comes to programming the device, we try different settings at first,” said Hennigs. “We then adjust those during follow-up visits as we learn more about how his symptoms are being controlled.”
After seeing success for nearly a year, Laycock progressed to a more advanced form of DBS called adaptive deep brain stimulation, or aDBS.
“Traditional DBS gives the same stimulation to the brain 24 hours a day. What makes aDBS different is that it can adapt and fine-tune the stimulation in real time.” (Cleveland Clinic)
“Traditional DBS gives the same stimulation to the brain 24 hours a day. What makes aDBS different is that it can adapt and fine-tune the stimulation in real time,” said Dr. Michael Gostkowski, a neurologist at Cleveland Clinic, in the release.
“By tracking a certain frequency in the brain, it can increase or decrease the stimulation as needed to better control symptoms.”
Laycock was a good candidate for the advanced therapy because his symptoms fluctuated throughout the day, which means a treatment that could adapt to those fluctuations could be more effective, according to the clinic.
“Since Rand’s a music conductor, fine-tuning with aDBS would reduce the risk of him experiencing tremors if his medication were to wear off in the middle of a concert or performance,” said Hennigs.
Laycock was a good candidate for the advanced therapy because his symptoms fluctuated throughout the day. (Rand Laycock)
Because of his previous positive experience with DBS, Laycock jumped at the chance to receive the new version.
“It sounded like it would make my life simpler – not having to worry about adjusting my device settings and medications as frequently,” he told Cleveland Clinic.
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The conductor’s implanted device was able to support new adaptive technology, so it was just a matter of working with Hennigs to update the settings.
Laycock began receiving aDBS in March 2025. Now, his tremors are almost completely gone except for times of extreme stress or anxiety, according to the release.
Throughout his health journey, Laycock has not only been supported by his care team, but also his family. (Rand Laycock)
“And my dyskinesia is pretty well under control,” he said. “My symptoms are minimal compared to the way they were, and a lot of that is due to adaptive deep brain stimulation.”
Laycock is now approaching his 47th year as a music conductor, the release stated, and he looks forward to spending time with his wife, two children and granddaughter.
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Gostkowski encourages Parkinson’s patients to ask their doctors about DBS or aDBS as an option to control symptoms and improve quality of life.
Laycock added, “I know the thought of brain surgery can be intimidating, but it’s a life-changing procedure that allows you to become your own self again.”
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Stat of the week
More than 59% of women may have high blood pressure by 2050, according to a new report from the American Heart Association.
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A new report by the American Heart Association (AHA) included some troubling predictions for the future of women’s health.
The forecast, published in the journal Circulation on Wednesday, projected increases in various comorbidities in American females by 2050.
More than 59% of women were predicted to have high blood pressure, up from less than 49% currently.
The review also projected that more than 25% of women will have diabetes, compared to about 15% today, and more than 61% will have obesity, compared to 44% currently.
As a result of these risk factors, the prevalence of cardiovascular disease and stroke is expected to rise to 14.4% from 10.7%.
The prevalence of cardiovascular disease and stroke in women is expected to rise to 14.4% from 10.7% by 2050. (iStock)
Not all trends were negative, as unhealthy cholesterol prevalence is expected to drop to about 22% from more than 42% today, the report stated.
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Dr. Elizabeth Klodas, a cardiologist and founder of Step One Foods in Minnesota, commented on these “jarring findings.”
“The fact that on our current trajectory, cardiometabolic disease is projected to explode in women within one generation should be a huge wake-up call,” she told Fox News Digital.
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“Hypertension, diabetes, obesity — these are all major risk factors for heart disease, and we are already seeing what those risks are driving. Heart disease is the No. 1 killer of women, eclipsing all other causes of death, including breast cancer.”
Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death for women in the U.S. and around the world. (iStock)
Klodas warned that heart disease starts early, progresses “stealthily,” and can present “out of the blue in devastating ways.”
The AHA published another study on Thursday revealing one million hospitalizations, showing that heart attack deaths are climbing among adults below the age of 55.
The more alarming finding, according to Klodas, is that young women were found more likely to die after their first heart attack than men of the same age.
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“This is all especially tragic since heart disease is almost entirely preventable,” she said. “The earlier you start, the better.”
Children can show early evidence of plaque deposition in their arteries, which can be reversed through lifestyle changes if “undertaken early enough and aggressively enough,” according to the expert.
Moving more is one part of protecting a healthy heart, according to experts. (iStock)
Klodas suggested that rising heart conditions are associated with traditional risk factors, like smoking, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, diabetes, obesity and a sedentary lifestyle.
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Doctors are also seeing higher rates of preeclampsia, or high blood pressure during pregnancy, as well as gestational diabetes. Klodas noted that these are sex-specific risk factors that don’t typically contribute to complications until after menopause.
The best way to protect a healthy heart is to “do the basics,” Klodas recommended, including the following lifestyle habits.
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Klodas especially emphasized making improvements to diet, as the food people eat affects “every single risk factor that the AHA’s report highlights.”
“High blood pressure, high blood sugar, high cholesterol, excess weight – these are all conditions that are driven in part or in whole by food,” she said. “We eat multiple times every single day, which means what we eat has profound cumulative effects over time.”
“Even a small improvement in dietary intake, when maintained, can have a massive positive impact on health,” a doctor said. (iStock)
“Even a small improvement in dietary intake, when maintained, can have a massive positive impact on health.”
The doctor also recommends changing out a few snacks per day for healthier choices, which has been proven to “yield medication-level cholesterol reductions” in a month.
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“Keep up that small change and, over the course of a year, you could also lose 20 pounds and reduce your sodium intake enough to avoid blood pressure-lowering medications,” Klodas added.
“Women should not view the AHA report as inevitable. We have power over our health destinies. We just need to use it.”
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