Bilateral subthalamic deep brain stimulation in Parkinson disease patients with severe tremor.
BACKGROUND
Previous studies have shown that subthalamic nucleus (STN) deep brain stimulation (DBS) improves tremor in Parkinson disease (PD). However, the patients included in those studies were unselected for tremor severity.


OBJECTIVE
We specifically assessed the effect of STN DBS on tremor in selected PD patients with severe tremor.


METHODS
Seventy-two PD patients who had received bilateral STN DBS were included. The effects of STN DBS on the off-medication tremor, the on-medication tremor, and the off-medication action tremor in patients selected as the worst one-third in each category at baseline were evaluated after a mean duration of > 2 years.


RESULTS
In patients with severe off-medication tremor, off-medication tremor score improved from 12.28 +/- 2.80 at baseline to 1.93 +/- 2.85 at the last follow-up (P < .001). The off-medication tremor in the off-stimulation state at the last follow-up was less severe than the preoperative off-medication tremor. In patients with severe on-medication tremor, on-medication tremor score improved from 6.17 +/- 2.45 to 1.35 +/- 2.58 (P < .001). In patients with severe off-medication action tremor, off-medication action tremor score improved from 5.08 +/- 1.35 to 1.24 +/- 1.42 (P < .001).


CONCLUSIONS
STN DBS is effective for severe off- and on-medication tremor and off-medication action tremor in PD. Our findings suggest that STN DBS reduces PD tremor through, at least in part, its effect on the tremor-generating mechanism independent of dopaminergic transmission and that long-term electrical stimulation of STN might induce a structural or neurochemical change leading to the improvement of tremor.
Kim
Han-Joon
HJ
Department of Neurology, Movement Disorder Center, Neuroscience Research Institute, BK21, College of Medicine, Seoul National University Hospital, Seoul, Korea.
Jeon
Beom S
BS
Paek
Sun Ha
SH
Lee
Jee-Young
JY
Kim
Hee Jin
HJ
Kim
Chi Kyung
CK
Kim
Dong Gyu
DG
D000368:Aged; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D015331:Cohort Studies; D046690:Deep Brain Stimulation / Q000379:methods; D010300:Parkinson Disease / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000628:therapy; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D020531:Subthalamic Nucleus / Q000033:anatomy & histology / Q000502:physiology; D014202:Tremor / Q000209:etiology / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000628:therapy