[Effects of bilateral deep brain stimulation in the subthalamic nucleus using two methods of target structure verification]. / Dinamika motornykh simptomov bolezni Parkinsona na fone khronicheskoi dvustoronnei élektrostimuliatsii subtalamicheskogo iadra s ispol'zovaniem dvukh metodik verifikatsii struktury misheni.

AIM: To evaluate the efficacy of deep brain stimulation in the subthalamic nucleus (DBS STN) in patients with Parkinson's disease (PD) using different methods of targeting according to the dynamics of motor symptoms of PD. MATERIAL AND METHODS: The study involved 90 patients treated with DBS STN. In 30 cases intraoperative microelectrode recording (MER) was used. MER was not performed in 30 patients of the comparison group. The control group consisted of 30 patients with PD who received conservative treatment. Hoehn and Yahr scale, Tinetti Balance and Mobility Scale (TBMS), Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale (UPDRS), Parkinson's Disease Quality of Life-39 Scoring System (РDQ-39), Schwab & England ADL Scale were used. Levodopa equivalent daily dose (LEDD, 2010) was calculated for each patient. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION: The effect of DBS STN using intraoperative microelectrode recording on the main motor symptoms, motor complications, walking as well as indicators of quality of life and daily activities was shown. In both DBS STN groups, there was a significant reduction in the LEDD and marked improvement of the control of motor symptoms of PD. A significant reduction in the severity of motor fluctuations (50%) and drug-induced dyskinesia (51%) was observed. Quality of life and daily activity in off-medication condition were significantly improved in both DBS STN groups of patients, irrespective of the method of target planning (75-100%), compared with the control group.

[Preliminary results of chronic intrathecal therapy in treatment of spastic syndromes of various etiologies].

OBJECTIVE: To estimate the effectiveness of the chronic intrathecal baclofen infusion (ITB) for the treatment of botuloresistant spastic disorders. MATERIAL AND METHODS: ITB have been performed in 15 cases of spastic disorders. In 8 cases spasticity was the result of cerebral palsy, 5 - spinal cord injure, 1 - cerebral injure, 1 - pyogenic spinal epiduritis. The results of surgical treatment were estimated with the Ashworth, GMFM-88 and Arens scales. These data have been exposed statistically analysis. RESULTS: Significantly decrease of spasticity have been revealed in most cases: from 4.26±0.7 points before the operation to 1.8±0.67 points after the operation (p<0.004). In 8 cases we have observed improvement in motor functions. CONCLUSION: ITB is an effective procedure which leads to decreasing of spasticity, incree of movement volume and improvement in motor functions in patients with spastic disorders.

[Long-term outcomes of SDR in various groups of cerebral palsy (CP) patients].

AIM: Long-term outcomes of selective dorsal rhizotomy (SDR) are not sufficiently summarized in the literature. The aim of this study was to systematize and evaluate long-term outcomes of SDR in various groups of cerebral palsy (CP) patients. MATERIAL AND METHODS: 47 patients with spastic CP were operated. In all cases, SDR of the L1-S1 roots was performed under EMG control. In all cases, laminoplasty was used as an approach. Outcomes of surgical treatment were estimated by the Ashworth scale and the GMFM 88 scale. The data were subjected to statistical analysis. The follow-up duration ranged from 12 months to 7 years. RESULTS: A significant reduction in spasticity from 4.34±0.53 points before surgery to 1.61±0.45 points after surgery (p<0.001) was observed in most cases. The dynamics of locomotor functions was maximal in the 3rd GMFM class: changing from 48±4% points before operation to 52±6% points 12 months after operation (p<0.042). The dynamics of locomotor functions amounted to 2% in the 4th GMFM class and 1% in the 5th GMFM class. The best functional outcomes were obtained in children under 10 years of age. A positive correlation only between the percentage of cut roots and a decrease in spasticity (r= 0.85) was found. No correlation between the amount of cut roots and the dynamics of locomotor functions was observed. No spinal cord deformities were observed during the follow-up period. CONCLUSION: A reduction in spasticity due to SDR depends on the amount of cut roots. The functional result of SDR is affected not only by a decrease in spasticity but also by the functional status and age of the patient at the time of surgery. In all cases, laminoplasty should be performed to prevent spinal cord deformities.

[Results of motor cortex stimulation in the treatment of chronic pain syndromes].

AIM: The article is aimed to demonstrate our experience in motor cortex stimulation (MCS) in patients with chronic neuropathic pain syndromes, assess the clinical efficacy of the technique in short-term and long-term follow-up, and analyze potential predictors of the MCS efficacy. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Twenty patients were implanted with MCS electrodes at the Burdenko Neurosurgical Institute in the period between 2004 and 2014. The mean age of patients was 52 years (26 to 74 years). The patients suffered from neuropathic pain syndromes of different genesis (post-stroke, multiple sclerosis, atypical facial pain, phantom limb pain, brachial plexus injury, spinal cord injury, complex regional pain syndrome I). All patients underwent neurological examination with verification of neuropathic pain (DN4, Pain Detect, LANSS). The pain intensity and its effect on quality of life were assessed before operation and during follow-up according to 10-point visual-analog scales (modified Brief Pain Inventory). Before surgery, all patients underwent several repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) sessions. After implantation of epidural electrodes, test MCS was performed. RESULTS: Test stimulation was positive in 19 (95%) patients. All these patients were implanted with a chronic MCS system. The mean follow-up was 49.3 months (from 3 to 96 months). In short-term follow-up (fist 6 months), a positive result of MCS was observed in 17 patients, and a reduction in the pain intensity ranged from 37.5% to 90%. In long-term follow up (from 12 to 96 months), 14 patients had positive MCS RESULTS: and a reduction in the pain intensity amounted to 25% to 60%. All patients with positive MCS results received significantly decreased doses of opioids and tramadol. Two patients developed infectious complications, but there was no neurological deficit. Analysis of the factors affecting the efficacy of motor cortex stimulation did not reveal a statistically significant effect of rTMS and the presence and intensity of motor deficit. CONCLUSION: Chronic epidural MCS is an effective and safety method for the treatment of some chronic neurogenic medically-refractory pain syndromes. Further research is necessary to specify the patient selection criteria and the MCS efficacy predictors.

[Pharmacotherapy accompanied by deep brain stimulation of the subthalamic nucleus in patients with Parkinson's disease]. / Medikamentoznaia terapiia na fone élektrostimuliatsii subtalamicheskogo iadra u patsientov s bolezn'iu Parkinsona.

AIM: To analyze pharmacotherapy accompanied by deep brain stimulation of the subthalamic nucleus. MATERIAL AND METHODS: The study included 54 patients, who underwent bilateral STN DBS from 2003 to 2012. The severity of motor disturbances, activities of daily living and complications of dopaminergic therapy were estimated in accordance with II, III and IV parts of the Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale (UPDRS) before operation and one, three and four years after it. L-dopa equivalent daily dose (LEDD) was assessed along with an analysis of the pharmacotherapy in whole. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION: By the end of the 1st year, the severity of motor disturbances in OFF-period decreased by 52.3% and remained stable for 3 years (51.8%), a slight increase of severity of motor disturbances was observed later, however it didn't reach the pre-operative level. The severity of motor fluctuations and drug-induced dyskinesia fell by 64.9%, 70.7% and 42.7% by the end of the first, third and fourth year of observation. The maximal decrease in LEDD was reached by the end of the 1st year and accounted for 57.7%; by the end of the third and fourth years it was 52.4% and 38.2%, respectively. During the 1st year, 16.7% of patients didn't take levodopa. The dose of pure levodopa decreased by the end of the 1st year by 64.6%, and by 56.7% and 43.7% by the end of the 3rd and 4th years, respectively. Monotherapy by an agonist of dopamine receptors (ADR) was received by 12.9% of patients, thus the share of ADR as part of the combined therapy increased in the postoperative period from 24.1% to 35.2%.

[A comparative study of the efficacy of deep brain stimulation of the subthalamic nucleus and pharmacological treatment in advanced Parkinson's disease]. / Sravnitel'noe issledovanie éffektivnosti neirokhirurgicheskogo lecheniia (élektrostimuliatsiia subtalamicheskogo iadra) i medikamentoznoi terapii na razvernutoi stadii bolezni Parkinsona.

Objective. To assess the clinical efficacy of deep brain stimulation (DBS STN) of the subthalamic nucleus in patients with Parkinson´s disease (PD) compared to pharmacological treatment. Material and methods. DBS STN was applied to 22 patients (mean age 53.2 years, mean disease duration 9,6 years). The control group included 28 patients (mean age 54.2 years, mean disease duration 9,6 years) with PD who received pharmacological treatment. Patients were examined in OFF-medication and ON-medication conditions at 3, 6, 9, 12, 24, 36 months. The Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale (UPDRS) part II, III, IV, the Hoehn and Yahr scale, the Schwab and England Scale, PDQ-39, the Hamilton Rating Scale for depression and the Spielberger Anxiety Scale were administered. All patients had motor fluctuations and dyskinesias. Results and conclusion. We demonstrated that DBS STN improved UPDRS II, III scores, reduced dyskinesias and motor fluctuations. After surgery, dopaminergic therapy was reduced by approximately 54.5%. In the control group, levodopa dose was increased by 20.5% to 36th month.

[Cognitive functions in patients with primary torsion dystonia treated with pallidal deep brain stimulation].

Forty-three patients with primary dystonia underwent neuropsychological assessment according to the method of A.R. Luria. Twenty-three patients with generalized dystonia and 20 with local forms (cervical and craniocervical) were included in the study. All patients were evaluated before pallidal deep brain stimulation (DBS GPi), 32 patients were examined 3-6 days after surgery, and 26 patients - during the first two years of the postoperative follow-up. The evaluation before surgery revealed cognitive impairment in 41 patients. The most common were mnemonic impairment, inertness and preservation in different tests, and spatial function decline. Thus, patients with local forms more frequently had troubles with performance memory tests, whereas spatial function disorders were more common in patients with generalized forms. The deterioration of cognitive functions was observed in 28 patients in the early postoperative period. Moreover, the group of patients with local forms had poorer results. The neuropsychological evaluation after 3-6 months of the postoperative follow-up showed the restoration of cognitive functions to the preoperative level. Neuropsychological syndrome observed in patients with dystonia was generally similar to that found in patients with lesions of the frontal lobe, the caudate nucleus, and the cerebellum.

[Microsurgical selective neurotomy in treatment of the focal spastic syndromes of the different etiology]. / Mikrokhirurgicheskaia selektivnaia nevrotomiia v lechenii fokal'nykh spasticheskikh sindromov razlichnoi étiologii.

OBJECT: To estimate the effectiveness of selective peripheral neurotomy (SPN) in the treatment of local botuloresistant spastic disorders. METHODS: 20 SPNs were performed in 18 patients with spastic disorders. In 11 cases we performed SPN of the nervus obturatorius, in 5 - tibialis, in 3 - musculocutaneous, in 1 - radialis. The results of surgical treatment were estimated by the Ashworth scale and GMFM-88. These data was statistically processed. RESULTS: There was a significant decrease of spasticity in most cases: from 4,02±0,52 points before surgery to 1,86±0,63 points after surgery (p<0,001). In 11 cases we observed significant improvement in motor functions: from 50,7±12,92% before surgery to 54,9±13,6% after surgery (p<0,001). CONCLUSION: SPN is an effective procedure which leads to significant reduction of spasticity, improvement in movement range motor functions in patients with spastic disorders.

[Posterior selective rhizotomy in the treatment of severe spastic syndrome in cerebral palsy].

BACKGROUND: Aim of this study was to optimize surgical technique of posterior selective rhizotomy for prevention of possible complications. MATERIALS AND METHODS: 11 patients (age 3-30 years) with severe spastic tetraparesis due to cerebral palsy were operated. Muscle tone in lower limbs reached 4-5 points (Ashworth scale). In all cases posterior selective rhizotomy of L1-S1 spinal roots was performed using laminoplasty and intraoperative electromyographic monitoring. Results were assessed in early postoperative period and during follow-up. RESULTS: In all cases in the early postoperative period we observed decrease of muscle tone to 1-2 points and increase of volume of passive movements. In the follow-up period 4 patients developed improvement of locomotor status, in 6 no changes were observed. In 1 case spastic syndrome recurred. We had no complications due to orthopaedic deformities of spinal column, sensory and pelvic disorders, muscular hypotonia. CONCLUSION: Posterior selective rhizotomy may be the method of choice in treatment of patients with severe spastic forms of cerebral palsy. Application of optimized surgical technique (laminoplasty, intraoperative stimulation electromyography) allows to decrease the risk of possible complications.

[Neuromodulation--controlled analgesia. Criteria for long efficiency].

In the past three decades, there have been cardinal changes in the surgical treatment of chronic pain syndromes. The early used destructive methods have been mostly substituted for surgical neuromodulation techniques. These include: (1) neurostimulation--the electric stimulation (ES) of peripheral nerves, the spinal cord, and brain; (2) intrathecal drug delivery by means of programmed pumps. Neurostimulation techniques are more frequently used in the treatment of no-cancer pain syndromes. Neurostimulation techniques are more frequently used in the treatment of no-cancer pain syndromes. Detailed analysis of our results showed that negative results and all cases with negative changes in follow-up were noted chiefly in patients with obvious and serious deafferentation signs. Testing ES is a major predictor of effectiveness for MCS. Positive results of chronic ES are observed in the vast majority of patients having good results in the postoperative testing period. Contrary to the current opinion as to worse follow-up results of chronic ES, we have seen positive changes in 5 patients followed up for about 3 years. Thus, by taking into account the high efficiency and minimal invasiveness of neurostimulation, no serious complications, as well as a possibility of improving the effectiveness of ES in a follow-up, this technique may be used as one of the first stages of surgical treatment of patients with neurogenic pain syndrome.

[Preliminary results of treatment for spastic forms of infantile cerebral paralysis by chronic epidural neurostimulation of lumbar enlargement].

Six patients with infantile cerebral paralysis following drug-resistant spastic syndrome were operated on. Four children suffered from lower spastic paraparesis; 2 had spastic tetraparesis. All the children were observed to have leg chiasm and myogenic equinus talipes. Electrodes were implanted under X-ray guidance into the posterior epidural cavity of the spinal cord at the level of Th10-Th12 vertebrae and the MATTRIX system. In the postoperative period, all the children had a steady-state decrease in leg and arm muscle tone during 1-2 daily high-frequency electrostimulation sessions. Within the early week, there was a regression of equinus talipes and leg chiasm. A follow-up indicated a steady-state clinical effect in all the patients. Stimulation myography revealed that the H reflex was suppressed and the H/M ratio decreased to the normal level (60-80%) in all the patients. An average of one daily electrostimulation session was sufficient to maintain muscle tone at the near-normal level.

[Electrostimulation of a subthalamic nuclear area in Parkinson's disease].

The paper presents the results of application of chronic electrostimulation of the subthalamic nucleus in 15 patients with the akinetic-rigid form of Parkinson's disease. Standard UPDRS, Schwab and England, Hoehn and Yahr, and PDQ-39 rating scales were used for the clinical evaluation of motor disorders. The patients were examined before and 6 months after surgery with ON-stimulation in OFF and ON-medication. Positive results as better life quality, ameliorated motor disorders, and fewer complication of drug therapy with a two-fold reduction in the daily dose of L-dopa were obtained in the vast majority of patients (n = 14).

[Chronic spinal cord electrostimulation in the management of neurogenic pain].

According to the data of epidemiological surveys made in Russia, the prevalence of chronic pain (without cancer diseases being kept in mind) accounts for less than 40% of the adult population and these figures tend to grow steadily. Despite a continuous increase in the potentialities of pharmacotherapy, physiotherapy, and psychotherapy, the efficiency of treatment in patients suffering from various pains has remained ineffective so far. Surgical treatments for pain include anatomic, destructive (neuroablation), and non-destructive (electrical stimulation and neuromodulation) operations. The purpose of the paper is to present the results of use of chronic spinal cord stimulation in 10 patients (6 males and 4 females) with severe drug-resistant pain. The patients' age was 32 to 74 years (mean 47.2 years). The duration of the pain syndrome before surgery averaged 6 years (3-13 years). The severity of pain and its influence on the quality of life were assessed, by using a modified 10-score visual analogue scale. The operation was performed in 2 steps. The step involved electrode implantation along the Tuochi needle under X-ray control. If there were positive postoperative results, the second stage was implantation of the subcutaneous part of the system for chronic stimulation. Positive (excellent and good) results were obtained in 9 of the patients, excellent results being in 5 patients. The follow-up averaged 18 months (6 to 28 months). The late postoperative positive result remained in 8 patients. Two patients were observed to have complications as displacement of an epidural electrode, which required surgical correction of its position. Resurgery restored the antipain effect of stimulation. Chronic epidural stimulation can be the method of choice in treating neurogenic pain since it is minimally invasive and more effective than other surgical treatments.

[Neurotransplantation in the treatment of Parkinson disease: follow-up]. / Neirotransplantatsiia v lechenii bolezni Parkinsona (katamnez).

The paper presents the results of follow-up of 11 patients with Parkinson's disease (PD) after neurotransplantation (NT) of fetal brain dopaminergic suspension into the caudatus and putamen on one or two sides. All the patients were clinically assessed at least 3 months before and during a follow-up (for as long as 9 years) in accordance with the Core Assessment Program for Intracranial Transplantation (CAPIT) by a Russian group of the Network of European CNS Transplantation and Restoration (NECTAR) Programme by using the Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale (URDRS). An analysis of clinical findings showed that: 1) there was a slight amelioration in bradykinesia, rigidity, and smaller dosage of L-DOPA; 2) tremor and drug-induced dyskinesia remained unchanged; 3) subsequently (till 9 years), the clinical effect slightly decreased in almost all patients with PD and in some of them the clinical status became worse than that prior to surgery; 4) repeated NT (2 cases) in the striatum contralaterally did not improved the situation; 5) only neurostimulation of subcortical structures improved clinical results. So we can conclude that NT alone cannot be beneficial and requires additional interventions at the subcortical level.

[Experience in surgical treatment of patients with focal forms of temporal epilepsy]. / Opyt khirurgicheskogo lecheniia bol;nykh s ochagovymi formami visochnoi épilepsii.

Fifteen patients with focal lesions of temporal epilepsy were examined before and 6 months to 4 years after surgery. There were low-grade gliomas in 13 cases, muscle tissue heterotopy in 1 case, and medial temporal sclerosis in 1. Epileptogenic lesions were localized in the medial structures of the temporal lobe in 10 cases and in the lateral temporal regions in 5 cases. Comprehensive neurophysiological study, including intraoperative electrocorticography, was used to identify an epileptogenic zone (EZ). EZs were found in the medial structures on the affected side in all patients. Lesionectomies were performed in all cases. It was combined with medial resection in 12 cases (it was done in 10 patients until epileptic activity disappeared). Nine patients stopped having seizures after surgery. One patient had only auras. Improvements were slight in 5 patients. A relationship was found between the surgical outcomes and the site of a lesion and EZ. They authors conclude that complete recovery may occur in cases with medial locations of a lesion and EZ. The outcomes of surgery are much poorer in cases with the lateral sites of an lesion and in those with the medial site of EZ.