Dyskinesia-inducing lead contacts optimize outcome of subthalamic stimulation in Parkinson's disease

Background: Acute dyskinesias elicited by STN-DBS, here referred to as stimulation-induced dyskinesias, predict optimal clinical outcome in PD. However, it remains elusive whether stimulation-induced dyskinesias can guide DBS programming.

Objectives: Here, we characterized stimulation-induced dyskinesias clinically and anatomically. We then tested whether dyskinesia-inducing contacts could be effectively programmed using independent current source technology.

Methods: We characterized stimulation-induced dyskinesias with directional and ring stimulation retrospectively in 20 patients. We then localized dyskinesia-inducing contacts by imaging coregistration and eventually programmed those contacts.

Results: We elicited dyskinesias in half of our patients. Dyskinesia-inducing contacts were mainly directional and were all located ventrally within the dorsolateral motor STN. When these dyskinesia-inducing contacts were programmed using independent current source technology, dyskinesia disappeared and robust antibradykinetic effects were obtained.

Conclusion: We confirm that stimulation-induced dyskinesias are helpful clinical observations, which may guide programming of directional STN-DBS in PD. © 2019 International Parkinson and Movement Disorder Society.