Complications Related to Deep Brain Stimulation Lead Implantation: A Single-Surgeon Case Series

Deep brain stimulation (DBS) is the mainstay of surgical treatment for movement disorders, yet previous studies have shown widely varying complication rates. Given the elective nature of DBS surgery, minimizing surgical complications is imperative.

To evaluate short-term and long-term complications related to DBS lead implantation surgeries performed by an experienced surgeon and provide an updated benchmark comparison for other DBS centers and alternative therapies.

A retrospective chart review of patients who underwent DBS lead implantation surgery by a single surgeon at our institution between 2012 and 2020 was conducted. Demographic and clinical data including surgical complications were collected. A Kaplan-Meier survival analysis was used to evaluate the cumulative risk of lead revision or removal over time. Associations between patient characteristics and various complications were evaluated.

Four hundred fifty-one DBS leads were placed in 255 patients. Thirteen leads and 11 patients required revision. In total, 3.6% (95% CI [1.3%-5.9%]) of patients required revision at 1 year and 4.8% (95% CI [1.9%-7.6%]) at 5 years, with per-lead revision rates of 2.3% (95% CI [0.9%-3.6%]) and 3.3% (95% CI [1.5%-5.1%]), respectively. Less common diagnoses such as Tourette syndrome, post-traumatic tremor, and cluster headache trended toward association with lead revision or removal.

DBS performed by an experienced surgeon is associated with extremely low complication rates.