Medtronic, Inc. has announced a new deep-brain-stimulation (DBS) system called Activa PC+S that enables sensing and recording select brain activity, at various times selected by a physician, while simultaneously providing targeted DBS therapy.

Previous Medtronic systems were limited to stimulation.

“The new system will allow for new research that could one day significantly change the way people with devastating neurological and psychological disorders, such as Parkinson’s disease, essential tremor, dystonia, and treatment-resistant obsessive-compulsive disorder, are treated,” according to Medtronics.

Activa PC+S system received CE (Conformité Européenne) mark, but it’s not yet approved by the FDA for commercial use in the U.S.

Initially, this new technology will be made available to a select group of physicians worldwide for investigational use only, in clinical studies. The physicians will use the system to map the brain’s responses to Medtronic DBS therapy and explore applications for the therapy across a range of neurological and psychological conditions.

DBS therapy uses a surgically implanted medical device, similar to a pacemaker, to deliver mild electrical pulses to precisely targeted areas of the brain. The stimulation can be programmed and adjusted non-invasively by a trained clinician to maximize symptom control and minimize side effects. More than 100,000 patients worldwide have received Medtronic DBS Therapy.