Analysis of the effects of subthalamic nucleus deep brain stimulation on somatosensation in Parkinson’s disease patients
Neurological Sciences, vol.41, no.4, pp.925-931, 2020 (SCI-Expanded, Scopus)
- Publication Type: Article / Article
- Volume: 41 Issue: 4
- Publication Date: 2020
- Doi Number: 10.1007/s10072-019-04168-9
- Journal Name: Neurological Sciences
- Journal Indexes: Science Citation Index Expanded (SCI-EXPANDED), Scopus, Academic Search Premier, BIOSIS, CINAHL, EMBASE, Index Islamicus, MEDLINE, Psycinfo
- Page Numbers: pp.925-931
- Keywords: Deep brain stimulation, Kinesthesia, Non-motor symptom scale, Odor identification, Subthalamic nucleus, Two-point discrimination
- Hatay Mustafa Kemal University Affiliated: Yes
Abstract
Objective: Despite the subthalamic nucleus (STN) deep brain stimulation (DBS) is a treatment commonly used to ameliorate the motor symptoms of Parkinson’s disease (PD), its effects on somatosensation is unclear. The purpose of this study was to investigate the potential effects of DBS on temperature, proprioceptive, tactile, exteroceptive, pain and cortical sensations, and odor identification in PD patients. Methods: The study included 14 patients (with a mean age of 59.78 ± 11.03 years; range, 44–70 years) with idiopathic PD who underwent DBS surgery for movement disorders caused by PD at the same Neurosurgery Department. All patients were tested while DBS was turned on (DBS-ON) and off (DBS-OFF). To clearly observe the effect of removing stimulation off, DBS devices were turned off by experimental clinical personnel for a minimum duration of 30 min prior to examination. Temperature, proprioceptive, tactile, exteroceptive, pain and cortical sensations, and odor identification were examined. Results: We found that two-point discrimination was significantly lower during DBS-ON than DBS-OFF (p = 0.031). Tactile sensation and kinesthesia deviation degree were lower during DBS-ON than DBS-OFF, but were non-significant (p > 0.05). The number of correct answers on an assessment of graphesthesia was higher during DBS-ON, but was non-significant as well (p > 0.05). Odor identification was better during DBS-OFF. Conclusions: DBS may have an effective role to improve somatosensation and DBS-related benefits may not be explained by improvements in motor function alone, but rather by enhanced somatosensory processing. Further studies with larger study groups are needed.