[Our experiences of PISCES (percutaneously inserted spinal cord electrical stimulation) in SMON and other neurologic...

Percutaneously inserted spinal cord electrical stimulation (PISCES) was carried out in eleven intractable pain cases and in one spastic paraplegic case. The causes of intractable pain constitute subacute myelo-optic neuropathy (SMON) 6 cases, cerebrovascular disease 2 cases, multiple sclerosis (MS) 1 case, Charcot-Marie-Tooth (CMT) 1 case and transverse myelitis (TM) 1 case. The cause of spastic paraplegia was due to the ossification of posterior longitudinal ligament (OPLL). A trial stimulation was performed about two weeks before planning a permanent implantation of PISCES system. For the trial stimulation, epidural electrodes were percutaneously inserted with a guide of fluoroscopy in a X-ray room. The conditions of stimulation were adjusted to give an optimal electric dysesthesia. We employed pulse width 0.1-1.0 msec, pulse rate 1-120 Hz and pulse amplitude 0-10 Volt. If an excellent effect was obtained by trial study, we proceeded to the chronic implantation of PISCES system which were composed of epidural electrodes, a subcutaneous receiver and a surface antenna. The procedure of implantation was carried out in an operating room under local anesthesia. In our series, seven subjects (58%) experienced a rewarding effect by the trial stimulation and three underwent the permanent implantation of PISCES. We summarized the clinical courses of these three cases which were OPLL, CMT and SMON. Compared with the other methods for pain relief, PISCES is most characteristic in its safety and simplicity. To date, PISCES has been applied to various disorders; such as ataxia, spasticity, intractable pain, neurogenic bladder and peripheral vascular disease. But its efficacy has not been established in all these disorders.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)