The Hadassah medical centre is currently testing for use in Israel a procedure they say could offer breakthroughs in treating a litany of disorders, from Parkinson’s disease to depression.

Deep Brain Stimulation (DBS) uses a so-called “brain pacemaker” to send electric pulses into the brain of the patient in a very localised manner.

Senior lecturer of functional neurosurgery at Hadassah, Dr Zvi Israel, said the procedure “could be the next frontier in the world of psychiatric disease”, adding that the treatment can potentially help patients who have not responded to traditional medicine and therapy.

The testing being carried out at Hadassah is still in its clinical trial phase, but the procedure could soon be widely available in Israel.