(New York Times) – A guitarist in a death metal band was one of several people who found that personalized deep brain stimulation eased their pain and helped them reduce pain medication.

Chronic pain, defined as lasting at least three months, afflicts about 20 percent of adults in the United States, an estimated 50 million people, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. In about a third of cases, the pain substantially limits daily activities, the C.D.C. reported.

Some patients find relief in medication, nerve blocks or spinal cord stimulation, but doctors say these methods don’t work for many patients and have led to opioid addiction for some.

The study Mr. Mowery participated in was small, involving six patients with various types of longstanding chronic pain unrelieved by other treatments. But the trial was intensive and rigorous. Researchers implanted electrodes, identified brain areas and neural signals linked to individual patients’ pain, and then developed personalized algorithms using A.I. that delivered bursts of stimulation when those signals surged. (Read More)