Parkinson’s patient plays clarinet during brain surgery

As explained in this BBC report:

A woman with Parkinson's disease who played a clarinet while undergoing brain stimulation said she was "delighted" with how it went.

Denise Bacon, 65, from Crowborough in East Sussex, experienced instant improvement in her finger movements as the electrical current was delivered to her brain, doctors at King's College Hospital said.

The retired speech and language therapist underwent deep brain stimulation (DBS) after suffering symptoms of Parkinson's.

She was diagnosed with the disease in 2014 and it has affected her ability to walk, swim, dance and play her clarinet.

During a four-hour operation at King's College Hospital, Keyoumars Ashkan, a professor of neurosurgery, performed DBS to help relieve symptoms while Ms Bacon stayed awake.

DBS is a surgical procedure using electrodes implanted in the brain and is suitable for some patients with disorders such as Parkinson's.

Ms Bacon was given a local anaesthetic to numb her scalp and skull and had immediate improvement in her fingers on the operating table, allowing her to play the clarinet easily.