Involuntary movements during thermolesion predict a better outcome after microelectrode guided posteroventral pallidotomy
- Marcelo Merello,
- Angel Cammarota,
- Osvaldo Betti,
- Maria Ines Nouzeilles,
- Daniel Cerquetti,
- Horacio Garcia,
- Ralph Pikielny,
- Ramón Leiguarda
- Movement Disorders Section, Raul Carrea Institute for Neurological Research, FLENI, Buenos Aires, Argentina
- Dr Ramón Leiguarda, Neurology Department, FLENI Montañeses 2325, 1428 Buenos Aires, Argentina.
- Received 19 July 1996
- Revised 17 March 1997
- Accepted 3 April 1997
Abstract
Eight of the first 15 patients with advanced Parkinson’s disease who underwent microelectrode guided posteroventral pallidotomy developed transient abnormal involuntary movements during thermolesion, four of whom also did so during high frequency macrostimulation. Abnormal involuntary movements found before thermolesion were choreic, ballistic, or choreoathetoid in nature, usually persisted less than 60 minutes, and were contralateral to the site of thermolesion in six and bilateral in two of them. The appearance of abnormal involuntary movements during macrostimulation or thermolesion of the internal globus pallidus correlated with better surgical outcome as measured by UPDRS motor items and CAPIT timed test, so that they seem to be of prognostic value.
