Bud Leavell, 72, suffered from severe tremors for years after his Parkinson's diagnosis, making it impossible for him to enjoy his favorite pastime of repairing radios in his garage.But within minutes of receiving a newly approved ultrasound treatment, his tremor was completely gone.Leavell, a retired salesman and Air Force veteran in Arlington, Texas, experienced the dramatic before-and-after result at UT Southwestern Medical Center.CARLY SIMON REVEALS THE COMMON CONDITION THAT MASKED HER PARKINSON'S DIAGNOSISThe focused ultrasound targeted precise areas deep in Leavell’s brain.Unlike deep brain stimulation, which requires opening the skull, this new treatment is non-invasive.At his latest follow-up, Leavell's tremor remained as well-controlled as it was immediately after the procedure, according to his doctor.
When asked how the tremor was doing, Leavell responded with, "What tremor?"Leavell was diagnosed with Parkinson’s in 2017, immediately following surgery for thyroid cancer."My voice was weak and gravelly, and within a few days, a tremor set into my right hand," he shared with Fox News Digital."Before this time, I was experiencing a slow loss of my sense of smell."The tremors made it "frustratingly difficult" for Leavell to perform certain functions, especially anything that required fine motor skills in his dominant hand, such as using his binoculars or clicking a computer mouse.NEUROLOGIST REVEALS WHY PARKINSON'S SYMPTOMS ARE OFTEN MISTAKEN FOR OTHER CONDITIONSDr.
Bhavya Shah, a neuroradiologist at UT Southwestern Medical Center, introduced Leavell to the option of a focused ultrasound treatment that was approved by the FDA in January 2026 to treat the primary motor symptoms of Parkinson’s disease, including stiffness and slowness."High-energy ultrasound waves are focused across the skull onto discrete brain targets," Shah told Fox News Digital."The ultrasound energy heats up these nuclei, or nerve bundles, and removes them.
This stops the patholog...