Title: Immediate effects of deep brain stimulation of the subthalamic nucleus on nonmotor symptoms in Parkinson's disease
Abstract: Objective To assess the immediate effects of deep brain stimulation of the subthalamic nucleus (STN-DBS) on nonmotor symptoms (NMS) in Parkinson's disease (PD). Background Immediate effects of STN-DBS on motor functions are well accepted, but similar data on NMS are mainly lacking. Methods 34 PD patients who received bilateral STN-DBS were examined in medication Off state for frequency and severity of 10 NMS (dysphagia, anxiety, depression, fatigue, excessive sweating, inner restlessness, pain, concentration/attention, dizziness, bladder urgency) using a visual analogue scale (VAS) with STN-DBS Off and On. Motor assessments were done using UPDRS part III. Results Independent of STN-DBS status, most frequent NMS was fatigue (85% of patients), followed by problems with concentration/attention (71%) and inner restlessness (53%). Frequencies of most NMS were similar in both STN-DBS statuses, while only inner restlessness was significantly decreased by STN-DBS. Severities of most NMS were significantly improved by STN-DBS on the cohort level, while only excessive sweating, pain and dizziness did not show significant severity changes. However, variable proportions of patients (15–71%, depending on the NMS) reported relevant improvements (>10% on VAS) by STN-DBS with fatigue showing the largest proportion of patients with symptom improvement (71%). There were no correlations of severity changes of NMS with motor improvement, demographic data and medication. Conclusion STN-DBS does not have major immediate effects on frequencies of NMS, but improves most NMS particularly psychiatric symptoms such as depression, anxiety and fatigue in a variable subset of patients. There is no indication that STN-DBS worsens NMS.
Publication Year: 2012
Publication Date: 2012-06-07
Language: en
Type: article
Indexed In: ['crossref', 'pubmed']
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Cited By Count: 70
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