Deep Brain Stimulation (DBS) for the Treatment of Refractory Alcohol Use Disorder (AUD): Pilot Trial

This is a phase I, non-blinded, non-randomized, pilot trial for safety and efficacy of DBS for AUD. Patients who meet inclusion and exclusion criteria will be identified and recruited from the practices of Sunnybrook psychiatrists. Five (5) to ten (10) subjects will be enrolled and study duration for each patient will be of one (1) year. Our primary objective is to establish the safety of DBS in a patient population with treatment refractory AUD. In addition to demonstrating safety, our second primary objective will be to evaluate if DBS-targeted nucleus accumbens in alcoholism is efficacious in the treatment-refractory patients with AUD. This will be measured by various outcome measures that will include validated scales to assess addiction and craving behaviours.