Researchers present a study in which the deep brain stimulation procedure was tested for the first time on a 24-year-old person who had suffered from severe stuttering since early childhood. As the team reports, the frequency was reduced by 46 percent and the severity by 29 percent. The person himself reported a significant improvement in his quality of life. The scientists showed that brain stimulation itself caused the effects. But there was also a placeob effect because the brain learned through the treatment.
The stimulation took place at different locations in the brain and was also paused in phases without the person knowing. The effects appeared with a delay of several weeks, which is an indication that the stuttering was not suppressed but influenced.
The participant himself had consulted the scientists, drawn attention to his massive problems with stuttering and asked for a new type of therapy. She had previously completed available treatments without any significant results.
source
Kell, C.A. et al. (2025). Left thalamic deep brain stimulation for persistent developmental stuttering. Journal of Fluency Disorders. DOI: 10.1016/j.jfludis.2025.106147
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