Midbrain length by the one-line method predicts motor outcome after deep brain stimulation in Parkinson's disease.

BACKGROUND

Deep brain stimulation (DBS) of the subthalamic nucleus (STN) is an effective treatment for Parkinson's disease (PD). The outcome of DBS varies from patient to patient.

OBJECTIVES

We investigated the preoperative changes in the midbrain to predict DBS outcomes.

METHODS

Patients with PD who underwent bilateral STN-DBS at Juntendo University Hospital between June 2019 and October 2020 were included. We compared the Movement Disorders Society Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale Part III score in the off state 3 months before and 1 year after surgery, and the difference in the score was defined as the motor outcome after DBS. Preoperative magnetic resonance images of the midbrain were evaluated using FreeSurfer and the One-Line Method.

RESULTS

A total of 34 patients were enrolled. Multiple regression analysis with least squares indicated that the volume of the midbrain measured using FreeSurfer had no significance as an independent variable (p = 0.16), whereas the midbrain length evaluated using the One-Line Method had significance (p < 0.05) when the outcome of motor symptoms was set as the dependent variable.

CONCLUSIONS

We showed that midbrain size evaluated using the One-Line Method was a good predictor of the motor outcome after STN-DBS, but volume measured using FreeSurfer was not. The One-Line Method was considered to detect changes in size specifically in the midbrain tegmentum, which is associated with PD motor symptoms. Thus, we present a simple and useful method for predicting poor outcomes after STN-DBS treatment in patients with PD with disease progression.