Quality of life of patients with Parkinson's disease: a comparison between preoperative and postoperative states among those who were treated with deep brain stimulation

• Published in: Arquivos de neuro-psiquiatria Vol. 80; no. 4; pp. 391 - 398
• Main Authors: Lucca, Maria Eduarda Turczyn de, Maffini, Jhulia Farinha, Grassi, Mariana Guerrini, Abdala, Amanda Elias, Nisihara, Renato Mitsunori, Francisco, Alexandre Novicki, Farah, Marina, Fernandes de Oliveira Kumer, Tatiana von Hertwig
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Rua do Matoso 170, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, CEP 20270-135, Brazil Thieme Revinter Publicações Ltda 01.04.2022; Arquivos de Neuro-Psiquiatria; Academia Brasileira de Neurologia - ABNEURO
• Subjects: Deep brain stimulation; Deep Brain Stimulation - methods; Globus pallidus; Humans; Longitudinal Studies; Movement disorders; Neurodegenerative diseases; NEUROSCIENCES; Neurosurgery; Parkinson Disease - drug therapy; Parkinson's disease; Patients; PSYCHIATRY; Quality of Life; Retrospective Studies; Subthalamic nucleus; Treatment Outcome; Parkinson Disease; Doença de Parkinson; Quality of Life; Estimulação Encefálica Profunda; Qualidade de Vida; Deep Brain Stimulation
• ISSN: 0004-282X; 1678-4227; 1678-4227
• DOI: 10.1590/0004-282X-ANP-2021-0048

ABSTRACT Background:  Deep brain stimulation (DBS) is a well-established procedure for treating Parkinson's disease (PD). Although its mechanisms of action are still unclear, improvements in motor symptoms and reductions in medication side effects can be achieved for a significant proportion of patients, with consequent enhancement of quality of life. Objective:  To investigate the impact of DBS on the quality of life of PD patients. Methods:  This was a retrospective longitudinal study with collection of historical data in a neurosurgery center, from June 2019 to December 2020. The sample was obtained according to convenience, and the Parkinson's Disease Questionnaire (PDQ-39), Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale (UPDRS) III and IV, Trail-Making Test and Verbal Fluency Test were used. Results:  Data were collected from 17 patients (13 with subthalamic nucleus DBS and 4 with globus pallidus pars interna DBS). Significant improvement (p=0.008) on the UPDRS III was observed in comparing the preoperative without DBS with the postoperative with DBS. About 47.0% of the patients showed post-surgical improvement in QoL (p=0.29). Thirteen patients were able to complete part A of the Trail-Making Test and four of these also completed part B. Almost 60% of the patients scored sufficiently on the semantic test, whereas only 11.8% scored sufficiently on the orthographic evaluation. No association between implant site and test performance could be traced. Conclusions:  Improvements in quality of life and motor function were observed in the majority of the patients enrolled. Despite the limitations of this study, DBS strongly benefits a significant proportion of PD patients when well indicated.