Short-Term Adverse Outcomes After Deep Brain Stimulation Treatment in Patients with Parkinson Disease

Despite ongoing progress in our understanding of long-term outcomes after neuromodulation procedures, acute adverse outcomes shortly after deep brain stimulation (DBS) treatment have remained remarkably limited.

To identify risk factors associated with acute 30-day outcomes after DBS treatment in patients with Parkinson disease (PD).

We evaluated patients who underwent DBS treatment for PD from 2005 to 2014 through the American College of Surgeons National Surgical Quality Improvement Program database. We used bivariate analysis and multivariate logistic regression to identify short-term postoperative outcomes, including 30-day complication, discharge destination, and unplanned readmission.

Overall, 650 patients with PD underwent DBS procedures and complications were identified in 32 patients (4.9%). Of 481 patients who had complete discharge data, 18 patients (3.7%) were discharged to a facility and 16 patients (3.3%) experienced an unplanned readmission. Patients with PD who were obese (P = 0.045), who had preoperative anemia (P = 0.008), and who experienced longer operative durations (P = 0.01) had increased odds of postoperative complications. Inpatient status (P = 0.001), dependent functional status (P < 0.001), and anemia (P = 0.043) were all associated with discharge to a facility other than home. Longer operative duration (P = 0.013), anemia (P = 0.036), and dependent functional status (P = 0.03) were significantly associated with unplanned readmission. As expected, complications increased the likelihood of unplanned readmission (P < 0.001).

This study provides individualized estimates of the risks associated with short-term adverse outcomes based on patient demographics and comorbidities. These data can be used as an adjunct for short-term risk stratification of patients with PD being considered for DBS treatment.