Turkish Neurosurgery
Subthalamic nucleus deep brain stimulation in a patient with severe axial symptoms and suboptimal levodopa responsive Parkinsons disease |
Behrad Nassehi1, Taha Assadnejad1, Onur Yildiz 2, Dursun Aygun 3, Ersoy Kocabicak4 |
1Ondokuz Mayis University Medicine Faculty, Neuromodulation Center, Samsun, 2Erzurum Regional Health Application and Research Hospital, Neurology, Erzurum, 3Ondokuz Mayıs University, Neurology, Samsun, 4Ondokuz Mayıs University, Neurosurgery, Samsun, |
DOI: 10.5137/1019-5149.JTN.35424-21.3 |
Background: Deep brain stimulation (DBS) is a well-established treatment option for improving function and quality of life in carefully selected patients with Parkinsons disease (PD). Patient selection is a crucial step that should be carried out by an experienced multidisciplinary team according to the proposed inclusion and exclusion criteria to increase the quality of life (QoL) of patients. Case: A 47-year-old bedridden woman with a 20-year history of PD presented with levodopa-unresponsive tremor and severe axial symptoms. Despite various antiparkinsonian medications, a suboptimal improvement was observed with the levodopa challenge test. After detailed evaluations, she underwent bilateral Subthalamic nucleus DBS (STN-DBS). During 2-year-follow-up her axial symptoms improved significantly leading to a better QoL. Conclusion: Although levodopa-resistant axial symptoms are considered a relative contraindication to DBS surgery, this case report demonstrates that with an interdisciplinary approach and an accurate assessment of symptoms, even bedridden and late-stage selected PD cases may benefit from DBS.
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Corresponding author : Ersoy Kocabicak