Deep brain stimulation for multiple sclerosis tremor: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Area of Science:

• Neurology
• Neurosurgery
• Biomedical Engineering

Background:

• Multiple Sclerosis (MS) is a chronic neurological disease.
• MS-related tremor significantly impacts patient quality of life.
• Current treatments for MS tremor have limitations.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the efficacy of deep brain stimulation (DBS) for treating MS-related tremor.
• To synthesize existing evidence through a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Main Methods:

• Systematic literature search across multiple databases (PubMed, Web of Science, Embase, Scopus, Google Scholar, gray literature).
• Included studies published between 1999-2018, focusing on DBS for MS tremor.
• Meta-analysis of data from 17 articles involving 168 patients.

Main Results:

• Pooled analysis of 168 patients showed a 73% frequency of tremor improvement (95% CI: 64-83%).
• A significant pooled standardized mean difference (SMD) of -2.9 (95% CI: -4.8, -0.98) indicated post-treatment improvement.
• Follow-up duration ranged from 6 to 62 months.

Conclusions:

• Deep brain stimulation (DBS) demonstrates efficacy in improving MS-related tremor.
• DBS represents a viable therapeutic option for managing debilitating tremors in multiple sclerosis patients.