@article{ref1,
title="Unilateral pedunculopontine stimulation improves falls in Parkinson's disease",
journal="Brain: a journal of neurology",
year="2010",
author="Moro, Elena and Hamani, Clement and Poon, Yu-Yan and Al-Khairallah, Thamar and Dostrovsky, Jonathan O. and Hutchison, William D. and Lozano, Andres M.",
volume="133",
number="Pt 1",
pages="215-224",
abstract="Postural instability and falls are a major source of disability in patients with advanced Parkinson's disease. These problems are currently not well addressed by either pharmacotherapy nor by subthalamic nucleus deep-brain stimulation surgery. The neuroanatomical substrates of posture and gait are poorly understood but a number of important observations suggest a major role for the pedunculopontine nucleus and adjacent areas in the brainstem. We conducted a double-blinded evaluation of unilateral pedunculopontine nucleus deep-brain stimulation in a pilot study in six advanced Parkinson's disease patients with significant gait and postural abnormalities. There was no significant difference in the double-blinded on versus off stimulation Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale motor scores after 3 or 12 months of continuous stimulation and no improvements in the Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale part III scores compared to baseline. In contrast, patients reported a significant reduction in falls in the on and off medication states both at 3 and 12 months after pedunculopontine nucleus deep-brain stimulation as captured in the Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale part II scores. Our results suggest that pedunculopontine nucleus deep-brain stimulation may be effective in preventing falls in patients with advanced Parkinson's disease but that further evaluation of this procedure is required.<p /> <p>Language: en</p>",
language="en",
issn="0006-8950",
doi="10.1093/brain/awp261",
url="http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/brain/awp261"
}