Long-term improvement in patients with severe Parkinson's disease after implantation of fetal ventral mesencephalic tissue in a cavity of the caudate nucleus: 5-year follow up in 10 patients. Clinica Puerta de Hierro Neural Transplantation Group.

Different groups worldwide have observed in recent years that stereotactic implantation of fetal tissue can ameliorate the clinical symptoms of Parkinson's disease. The authors therefore investigated whether implantation of fetal ventral mesencephalic (FVM) tissue via open surgery is also capable of producing an improvement and whether this improvement is transient or long lasting. The authors report their findings in a 5-year follow-up study in 10 patients with Hoehn and Yahr Grade IV or V Parkinson's disease in whom a single FVM graft was implanted in a cavity created in the right caudate nucleus.