WHAT:
Brad Carter, a Los Angeles man who captured international attention when he strummed his guitar during a live-tweeted UCLA surgery to implant a pacemaker in his brain, will appear at a UCLA press conference to discuss with his surgeon how undergoing the procedure has changed his life. He will also play guitar in public for the first time since the May 23 surgery.
Carter chose to undergo the surgery to halt what is known as benign essential tremor, a neurological disorder that made his hands shake when he moved them. He was the 500th Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center patient to undergo the deep-brain stimulation procedure, which uses imaging technology to target the exact site in the brain producing abnormal electrical signals. When surgeons implant the pacemaker, they stimulate the region to restore a more normal pattern of brain activity, effectively stopping the tremors.
WHO:
The following individuals will be available for interviews:
Brad Carter
The 39-year-old actor, musician and artist underwent deep-brain stimulation during an awake craniotomy, in which surgeons temporarily lifted a piece of his skull to implant a pacemaker inside his brain.
Dr. Nader Pouratian
An assistant professor of neurosurgery at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA and director of its neurosurgical movement disorders program, Pouratian is a leading expert on surgical therapies for Parkinson’s disease and essential tremor.
WHEN:
Wednesday, July 10 (Press check-in at 10:30 a.m.; press conference begins at 11 a.m.)
WHERE:
Auditorium of UCLA's Neuroscience Research Building (map)
635 Charles E. Young Dr. South, Los Angeles 90095
PARKING:
Parking for oversized media vans is very limited. Please R.S.V.P. to media contact by 3 p.m. on Tuesday, July 9, to be assigned a space for oversized trucks and to arrange a complimentary parking pass for passenger vehicles.
MEDIA CONTACT:
Elaine Schmidt | [email protected] | 310-794-2272