Thalamic Deep Brain Stimulation for Orthostatic Tremor: A Multicenter International Registry

Background: We report the accumulated experience with ventral intermediate nucleus deep brain stimulation for medically refractory orthostatic tremor. Methods: Data from 17 patients were reviewed, comparing presurgical, short-term (0-48 months), and long-term (>= 48 months) follow-up. The primary end point was the composite activities of daily living/instrumental activities of daily living score. Secondary end points included latency of symptoms on standing and treatment-related complications. Results: There was a 21.6% improvement (P = 0.004) in the composite activities of daily living/instrumental activities of daily living score, which gradually attenuated (12.5%) in the subgroup of patients with an additional long-term follow-up (8 of 17). The latency of symptoms on standing significantly improved, both in the shortterm (P = 0.001) and in the long-term (P = 0.018). Three patients obtained no/minimal benefit from the procedure. Conclusions: Deep brain stimulation of the ventral intermediate nucleus was, in general, safe and well tolerated, yielding sustained benefit in selected patients with medically refractory orthostatic tremor. (C) 2017 International