The medical field has spent many years researching conditions such as Alzheimer's, Parkinson's disease and Epilepsy.
Unfortunately, there is still no cure for any of these medical conditions, as it is hard to see into the brain to find out exactly what's causing them to occur.
Medical professionals have now found a way however to see into the brain with more accuracy and this could lead to all kinds of information being found out about what causes certain conditions in the brain.
The new technology they are using is actually old technology, as the components have been around for decades.
The medical field is coining this technology optogenetics and the procedure uses fiber optic lights to see into the brain.
When most people think about fiber optics, they think about the Internet line running into their house or the lights that are often times included in or on holiday decorations.
These same fibers however are small enough that doctors are now able to threat them into the skull so that they can explore the brain one section at a time.
Optogenetics gives doctors a way to pinpoint the exact areas of the brain that are causing medical conditions and diseases to occur.
Being without this type of technology for some time, doctors have only been able to treat the whole brain, rather than just the section of brain that is causing the problem.
By doing so, medications and treatments may be causing adverse effects on the parts of the brain or body that do not need the treatment.
Unfortunately, optogenetics is not a treatment or procedure that can currently be used in humans.
The method is only in a trial testing phase right now using worms, flies and rats.
Even so, the testing that has been done has shown positive results in the sense that scientists have already been able to pinpoint where Parkinson's cells are located in the brain of the subject matters that were tested.
Due to this, optogenetics is a new niche in diagnosing brain conditions that should be watched closely.