Subject: Pallidal DBS for Dystonia: Five-year Follow-up (AAN 2007)

Date: 6/1/2007
http://www.mdvu.org/emove/article.asp?ID=947

E-MOVE reports from the 59th annual meeting of the American Academy of Neurology. Poster, Session, and page numbers below refer to those published in Neurology 2007;68 (supplement 1).

Long-term follow-up of pallidal DBS for primary dystonia
M Tagliati, IU Isaias, D Weisz, JL Shils, RL Alterman
S43.004; A333

Pallidal deep brain stimulation remains effective for up to 5 years in patients with primary dystonia, according to this study.

Twelve primary dystonia patients (mean age 31 years), including 7 with DYT1 mutations [reference 1][reference 2], were treated with bilateral DBS. Follow-up of 3 years for all patients, 4 years for 6 patients, and 5 years for 5 patients, indicated sustained improvement on the Burke-Fahn-Marsden dystonia scale. Average motor improvement was 73% at 1 year, and 78%, 77%, 80%, and 85% for successive years. Different body regions were “fairly equally” responsive to treatment, and disability improvements lagged behind motor improvement.