Ventralis intermedius thalamotomy can succeed when ventralis intermedius thalamic stimulation fails: report of 2 cases for tremor.

In 2 patients with essential tremor, thalamotomy in the ventralis intermedius (VIM) provided lasting tremor relief after thalamic stimulation of the VIM failed. These cases illustrate that the effects of deep brain stimulation might not be those of simple inhibition, and that thalamotomy should be considered when deep brain stimulation does not succeed.