title: Bilateral subthalamic nucleus stimulation improves health-related quality of life in Parkinsonian patients.
abstract: Parkinson's disease (PD) is a common neurological disorder. Recently, bilateral deep brain stimulation (DBS) of the subthalamic nucleus (STN) has become an option in the treatment of severe PD. We measured the health-related quality of life (HRQoL) of 27 parkinsonian patients, who underwent a bilateral STN-operation. The instruments used for the evaluation of the HRQoL were the Parkinson's Disease Questionnaire (PDQ-39) and the Finnish version of the Nottingham Health Profile (NHP). We found that the quality of life significantly improved when measured with both HRQoL scales. Clinical improvement and improvement in HRQoL were positively correlated.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurosurgery, Oulu University Hospital, P.O. Box 21, FIN-90029 Oys, Finland. tuomo.erola@pp.inet.fi
authors.forename: Tuomo
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Erola
authors.forename: Petri
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Karinen
authors.forename: Esa
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Heikkinen
authors.forename: Juho
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Tuominen
authors.forename: Tarja
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Haapaniemi
authors.forename: John
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Koivukangas
authors.forename: Vilho
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Myllylä
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D046690:Deep Brain Stimulation / Q000379:methods*; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D007839:Functional Laterality; D006304:Health Status; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010300:Parkinson Disease / Q000523:psychology* / Q000628:therapy*; D011788:Quality of Life; D020531:Subthalamic Nucleus / Q000502:physiology*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires