title: One-year outcomes of spinal cord stimulation of the dorsal root ganglion in the treatment of chronic neuropathic pain.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Spinal cord stimulation of the dorsal root ganglion (DRG-SCS) is a new therapy for treating chronic neuropathic pain. Previous work has demonstrated the effectiveness of DRG-SCS for pain associated with failed back surgery syndrome, complex regional pain syndrome, chronic postsurgical pain, and other etiologies through 6 months of treatment; this report describes the maintenance of pain relief, improvement in mood, and quality of life through 12 months.
  
  
  METHODS
  Subjects with intractable pain in the back and/or lower limbs were implanted with an active neurostimulator device. Up to four percutaneous leads were placed epidurally near DRGs. Subjects were tracked prospectively for 12 months.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Overall, pain was reduced by 56% at 12 months post-implantation, and 60% of subjects reported greater than 50% improvement in their pain. Pain localized to the back, legs, and feet was reduced by 42%, 62%, and 80%, respectively. Measures of quality of life and mood were also improved over the course of the study, and subjects reported high levels of satisfaction. Importantly, excellent pain-paresthesia overlap was reported, remaining stable through 12 months.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Despite methodological differences in the literature, DRG-SCS appears to be comparable to traditional SCS in terms of pain relief and associated benefits in mood and quality of life. Its benefits may include the ability to achieve precise pain-paresthesia concordance, including in regions that are typically difficult to target with SCS, and to consistently maintain that coverage over time.
authors.affiliation: Sint Antonius Hospital, Nieuwegein, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: Liong
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Liem
authors.forename: Marc
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Russo
authors.forename: Frank J P M
authors.initials: FJ
authors.lastname: Huygen
authors.forename: Jean-Pierre
authors.initials: JP
authors.lastname: Van Buyten
authors.forename: Iris
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Smet
authors.forename: Paul
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Verrills
authors.forename: Michael
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Cousins
authors.forename: Charles
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Brooker
authors.forename: Robert
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Levy
authors.forename: Timothy
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Deer
authors.forename: Jeffrey
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Kramer
mesh_terms: D059350:Chronic Pain / Q000628:therapy; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D005727:Ganglia, Spinal / Q000502:physiology; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009437:Neuralgia / Q000628:therapy*; D059408:Pain Management / Q000379:methods*; D017060:Patient Satisfaction; D011788:Quality of Life; D062187:Spinal Cord Stimulation / Q000379:methods*; D016896:Treatment Outcome
keywords: Back pain; complex regional pain syndrome; dorsal root ganglion; failed back surgery syndrome; foot pain; leg pain; neuropathic pain; spinal cord stimulation; visual analog scale