Impact Of Deep Brain Stimulation Research Articles

Deep brain stimulation for Parkinson's disease: experience, benefits and limitations in a center in Latin America

Parkinson's disease is poorly studied in Colombia. It is pharmacologically managed, but for refractory cases, surgery is a therapeutic option, positively impacting on quality of life. To determine the impact of deep brain stimulation as management in the control of progression in patients with Parkinson's disease attended our institution between the years 2014 to 2020. Descriptive retrospective study, with patients collected between 2014 and 2020 undergoing deep brain stimulation surgery. The MDS-UPDRS (Movement Disorder Society-Sponsored Revision of the Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale) was applied in the pre- and postoperative period, and the results were compared. 21 patients were included and the UPDRS was applied, finding a decrease in scores in the postoperative period. One patient had an operative site infection. There was an improvement in the MDS-UPDRS score, with a low rate of complications. The procedure time was prolonged from the preoperative evaluation. Deep brain stimulation is the management of choice for refractory Parkinson's disease. The patients in this series showed improvement in their symptoms. Unfortunately, there are limitations to perform this procedure in Colombia, such as the delay in the authorization of the procedure.

Long-Term Impact of Deep Brain Stimulation in Parkinson's Disease: Does It Affect Rehabilitation Outcomes?

Background and Objectives: Although the growing literature is now focusing on the long-term effects of Deep Brain Stimulation (DBS) in Parkinson's disease (PD), there is still a large gap of knowledge about its long-term implications in rehabilitation. Therefore, this study aimed at investigating the effects of rehabilitation in PD patients years after DBS implantation. Materials and Methods: This retrospective case-control study analyzed records from Moriggia-Pelascini Hospital, Italy from September 2022 to January 2024. Data of PD patients (n = 47) with (DBS group, n = 22) and without (control group, n = 25) DBS were considered. All study participants underwent a daily rehabilitation program lasting four weeks, including warm-up, aerobic exercises, strength training, postural exercises, and proprioceptive activities. The outcomes assessed were the Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale (UPDRS), Berg Balance Scale (BBS), Timed Up and Go (TUG), 6 Min Walk Test (6MWT), and Self-Assessment Parkinson Disease Scale (SPDDS). Results: DBS group showed significant improvements in terms of all outcome measures after the rehabilitation intervention (UPDRS III: -7.0 (-11.5 to -1.0); p = 0.001; UPDRS I II IV: -12.0 (-19.0 to -4.5); p = 0.001; BBS: 7.0 (3.8 to 10.3); p < 0.001; TUG (s): -2.8 (-5.7 to -1.1); p < 0.001; SPDDS: -8 (-13.0 to -4.0); p < 0.001; 6MWT (m): 81 (37.3 to 132.3); p < 0.001). No differences were reported in the between-group analysis (p: NS). Conclusions: This study emphasizes positive rehabilitation effects on PD patients irrespective of DBS status. Further research is essential to elucidate long-term effects of DBS on rehabilitation outcomes of PD patients.

Impact of Deep Brain Stimulation on Non-Motor Symptoms in Parkinson's Disease.

Impact of Deep Brain Stimulation on Non-Motor Symptoms in Parkinson's Disease.

Deep brain stimulation: the current and future potential for people with Parkinson's

Parkinson's disease is the fastest growing neurological condition in the world with no cure; therefore, choosing the correct treatment to manage the patient's symptoms and prolonging their quality of life is of the utmost importance. Deep brain stimulation, an established methodology involving continuous electrical stimulation to the brain through surgically implanted electrodes, can present an effective option, but careful patient selection is needed to optimise outcomes. Here, Francesca Ramadan presents an overview of the current impact of deep brain stimulation and the ways in which its potential might be maximised in the future.

Impact of deep brain stimulation on gait in Parkinson disease: A kinematic study

BackgroundThe effect of Deep Brain Stimulation (DBS) on gait in Parkinson’s Disease (PD) is poorly understood. Kinematic studies utilizing quantitative gait outcomes such as speed, cadence, and stride length have shown mixed results and were done mostly before and after acute DBS discontinuation. ObjectiveTo examine longitudinal changes in kinematic gait outcomes before and after DBS surgery. MethodWe retrospectively assessed changes in quantitative gait outcomes via motion capture in 22 PD patients before and after subthalamic (STN) or globus pallidus internus (GPi) DBS, in on medication state. Associations between gait outcomes and clinical variables were also assessed. ResultGait speed reduced from 110.7 ± 21.3 cm/s before surgery to 93.6 ± 24.9 after surgery (7.7 ± 2.9 months post-surgery, duration between assessments was 15.0 ± 3.8 months). Cadence, step length, stride length, and single support time reduced, while total support time, and initial double support time increased. Despite this, there was overall improvement in the Movement Disorder Society-Unified Parkinson Disease Rating Scale-Part III score “on medication/on stimulation” score (from 19.8 ± 10.7–13.9 ± 8.6). Change of gait speed was not related to changes in levodopa dosage, disease duration, unilateral vs bilateral stimulation, or target nucleus. ConclusionQuantitative gait outcomes in on medication state worsened after chronic DBS therapy despite improvement in other clinical outcomes. Whether these changes reflect the effects of DBS as opposed to ongoing disease progression is unknown.

Predicting impact of Deep Brain Stimulation on Non-motor symptoms of Parkinson's disease.

This is the largest study on Radiomics analysis looking into the impact of Deep Brain Stimulation on Non-Motor Symptoms (NMS) of Parkinson's disease. Preoperative brain white matter radiomics of 120 patients integrated with clinical variables were used to predict the DBS effect on NMS after 1 year from the surgery. Patients were classified "suboptimal" vs "good" based on a 10% or more improvement in NMS score. The combined Radiomics-Clinical Random Forrest (RF) model achieved an AUC of 0.96, Accuracy of 0.91, Sensitivity of 0.94 and Specificity of 0.88. The Youden's index showed optimal threshold for the RF of 0.535. The confusion matrix of the RF classifier gave a TPR of 0.92 and a FPR of 0.03. This corresponds to a PPV of 0.93 and a NPV of 0.93. The predictive models can be easily interpreted and after careful large-scale validation be integrated in assisting clinicians and patients to make informed decisions.Clinical Relevance- This paper shows the lesser studied positive impact of Deep Brain Stimulation on Non motor symptoms of Parkinson's disease while allows clinicians to predict non responders to the therapy.

The impact of deep brain stimulation of the subthalamic nucleus on facial emotion recognition in patients with Parkinson's disease.

Deep brain stimulation (DBS) of the subthalamic nucleus (STN) is successful in patients with advanced Parkinson's disease (PD) but may worsen cognitive outcome, including facial emotion recognition (FER). Data-analyses on 59 consecutive PD patients with complete pre- and postoperative assessments, using a sensitive FER test, showed no changes in FER 1 year after STN-DBS surgery, both after group and individual analyses. These findings do however not exclude the impact of FER in and on itself on the outcome after STN-DBS.

The Impact of Deep Brain Stimulation on the Embarrassment and Self-Esteem of Patients with Essential Tremor (P7-11.008)

<h3>Objective:</h3> To examine how Deep Brain Stimulation (DBS) influences embarrassment and self-esteem in patients with essential tremor (ET) and assess caregiver impressions. <h3>Background:</h3> Social embarrassment is one of the reasons that patients with ET choose to have DBS surgery. However, studies have not explicitly evaluated how DBS influences embarrassment and self-esteem following surgery. <h3>Design/Methods:</h3> This prospective survey-based cohort study assessed embarrassment and self-esteem in patients with ET (N=15) who were eligible to receive DBS. The Essential Tremor Embarrassment Assessment (ETEA), Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale, and Bain and Findley Tremor Activities of Daily Living scale were administered at two time points: before DBS (T0) and 3 months following DBS surgery (T1). Semi-structured interviews were conducted at T0 and T1 and analyzed thematically. Clinical Global Impression (CGI) scales were administered at T0 and T1 to both patients and caregivers to assess how DBS influences perception of patient symptoms. <h3>Results:</h3> Demographically, the average age was 71.27 years and 8/15 were female. The average duration of ET was 34 years and 80% presented with bilateral onset. At T0, patients were most embarrassed with eating, drinking, and writing activities, only 1/15 patients reported low self-esteem, and caregiver perceptions of the patient’s quality of life were poorer than patient impressions. Females had higher embarrassment scores (M=13.9, F=26.4, p=0.15) and lower self-esteem scores (M=22.8, F=20.0, p=0.27) compared to males. Patients with unilateral onset had significantly lower self-esteem compared to patients with bilateral onset (unilateral=16.0, bilateral=22.6, p=0.011). Thematic analysis revealed activity modification contributes to feelings of embarrassment and patients with severe tremors were more likely to give up hobbies. <h3>Conclusions:</h3> These findings emphasize how embarrassment impacts quality of life and provide greater insight into which features of ET are associated with higher levels of embarrassment and lower self-esteem. Data collection and analysis at T1 is ongoing, with an expected enrollment of 40 total patients. <b>Disclosure:</b> Ms. Dave has nothing to disclose. The institution of Dr. Frey has received research support from Tourette Association of America. Dr. Yu has nothing to disclose. Janine Lemos Melo Lopes has nothing to disclose. The institution of Dr. Hess has received research support from Parkinson’s Foundation.

The impact of deep brain stimulation on apathy in parkinson\'s disease patients.

The impact of deep brain stimulation on apathy in parkinson\'s disease patients.

Post-mortem brain histological examination in the substantia nigra and subthalamic nucleus in Parkinson's disease following deep brain stimulation.

Parkinson’s disease (PD) is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder, pathologically hallmarked by the loss of dopamine neurons in the substantia nigra (SN) and alpha-synuclein aggregation. Deep brain stimulation (DBS) of the subthalamic nucleus (STN) is a common target to treat the motor symptoms in PD. However, we have less understanding of the cellular changes in the STN during PD, and the impact of DBS on the STN and SN is limited. We examined cellular changes in the SN and STN in PD patients with and without STN-DBS treatment. Post-mortem brain tissues from 6 PD non-STN-DBS patients, 5 PD STN-DBS patients, and 6 age-matched controls were stained with markers for neurodegeneration (tyrosine hydroxylase, alpha-synuclein, and neuronal loss) and astrogliosis (glial fibrillary acidic protein). Changes were assessed using quantitative and semi-quantitative microscopy techniques. As expected, significant neuronal cell loss, alpha-synuclein pathology, and variable astrogliosis were observed in the SN in PD. No neuronal cell loss or astrogliosis was observed in the STN, although alpha-synuclein deposition was present in the STN in all PD cases. DBS did not alter neuronal loss, astrogliosis, or alpha-synuclein pathology in either the SN or STN. This study reports selective pathology in the STN with deposits of alpha-synuclein in the absence of significant neuronal cell loss or inflammation in PD. Despite being effective for the treatment of PD, this small post-mortem study suggests that DBS of the STN does not appear to modulate histological changes in astrogliosis or neuronal survival, suggesting that the therapeutic effects of DBS mechanism may transiently affect STN neural activity.

Study of Discharge Outlines of Subthalamic Nucleus-Globus Pallidus External and the Favorable Impact of Deep Brain Stimulation in the Parkinson State

Aims: The aim of our model is to simulate deep brain stimulation mathematically instead of doing it experimentally to check whether the outlines in Parkinson’s disease helps in reducing the motor symptoms or not. The model is simulated here mathematically because clinical research is not feasible. My model is STN-GPe in which there are different differential equations. Also, to prove that the symptoms for Parkinson’s disease are reduced up to 99.59%.&#x0D; Study Design: Cross-correlation function.&#x0D; Place and duration of Study: Study was conducted in private college of Gurugram from January 2021 to September 2021.&#x0D; Methodology: Self designed, the conduct of the model has been accessible with the support of activity outlines produced in a normal state and Parkinson's state. These outlines have been related by finding out their correlation coefficient for dissimilar values of essential parameters. Here, a single-compartment conductance-based model is taken that concentrates on the subthalamic nucleus and synaptic input from globus pallidus (external). Current model displays extremely nonlinear behavior regarding many essential parameters.&#x0D; Results: Outcomes show that the activity outlines are extremely penetrating to several essential parameters. Deep brain stimulation is measured as a harmless and well-borne surgical technique to lighten Parkinson’s disease and extra movement ailments indications across some psychiatric situations. So, the deep brain stimulation technique has been applied here mathematically to find the cross-correlation between the two states. With the help of this stimulation, some promising results are obtained.&#x0D; Conclusion: The conclusion is that DBS is operative at reducing motor indications of parkinsonism by 99.59%.

Mapping Motor Pathways in Parkinson's Disease Patients with Subthalamic Deep Brain Stimulator: A Diffusion MRI Tractography Study.

IntroductionThis study assessed the safety of postoperative diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) with on-state deep brain stimulation (DBS) and the feasibility of reconstruction of the white matter tracts in the vicinity of the stimulation site of the subthalamic nucleus (STN). The association between the impact of DBS on the nigrostriatal pathway (NSP) and the treatment effect on motor symptoms in Parkinson’s disease (PD) was then evaluated.MethodsThirty-one PD patients implanted with STN-DBS (mean age: 66 years; 25 male) were scanned on a 1.5-T magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scanner using the DTI sequence with DBS on. Twenty-three of them were scanned a second time with DBS off. The NSP, dentato-rubro-thalamic tract (DRTT), and hyperdirect pathway (HDP) were generated using both deterministic and probabilistic tractography methods. The DBS-on-state and off-state tractography results were validated and compared. Afterward, the relationships between the characteristics of the reconstructed white matter tracts and the clinical assessment of PD symptoms and the DBS effect were further examined.ResultsNo adverse events related to DTI were identified in either the DBS-on-state or off-state. Overall, the NSP was best reconstructed, followed by the DRTT and HDP, using the probabilistic tractography method. The connection probability of the left NSP was significantly lower than that of the right side (p < 0.05), and a negative correlation (r = −0.39, p = 0.042) was identified between the preoperative symptom severity in the medication-on state and the connection probability of the left NSP in the DBS-on-state images. Furthermore, the distance from the estimated left-side volume of tissue activated (VTA) by STN-DBS to the ipsilateral NSP was significantly shorter in the DBS-responsive group compared to the DBS-non-responsive group (p = 0.046).ConclusionsDTI scanning is safe and delineation of white matter pathway is feasible for PD patients implanted with the DBS device. Postoperative DTI is a useful technique to strengthen our current understanding of the therapeutic effect of DBS for PD and has the potential to refine target selection strategies for brain stimulation.Supplementary InformationThe online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s40120-022-00331-1.

Multiscale co-simulation of deep brain stimulation with brain networks in neurodegenerative disorders

Deep brain stimulation (DBS) has been used successfully as symptomatic treatment in several neurodegenerative disorders, including Parkinson’s disease (PD). However, the mechanisms of its activity inside the brain network are unclear. Many virtual DBS models investigate the dynamics of a subnetwork surrounding the basal ganglia (BG) as a spiking network has been attracting a growing body of research in neuroscience. Connectomic data, on the other hand, show that DBS has a wide range of impacts on many distinct cortical and subcortical sites. Notably, the nonlinear reaction–diffusion multiscale mathematical models demonstrate the effectiveness of capturing crucial disease characteristics and are used to simulate large-scale brain activity. The BG and associated nuclei comprise many subcortical cell groups in the brain, and their couplings commonly revealed MRI-based assessments of the strength of anatomical connections. We have developed a hybrid modeling formalism and a unique co-simulation technique that allows us to compute electrodiffusive ion dynamics for the cortex–BG–thalamus (BGTH) brain network model within a large-scale brain connectome. We collect data from the Human Connectome Project (HCP) and propose a closed-loop DBS approach based on the brain network model. Moreover, we select regions in the parameter space that reflect the healthy and Parkinsonian states as well as the impact of DBS on the subthalamic nucleus (STN) and globus pallidus internus (GPi) neurons. We predicted that if we apply the DBS to the system described by the temporal model, the brain maintains a healthy state until 0.05ms for STN neurons and 0.035ms for GPi neurons. A local regulatory mechanism known as feedback inhibition control (FIC) points to the existence of underlying network dynamics in the white matter of connected brain regions. The model showed unanticipated effects that in the presence of diffusion, the human brain maintained a healthy state for a long time after the DBS had been applied to STN and GPi neurons. This research helps us better understand the changes in brain activity caused by DBS and enhances this clinical therapy, thus shedding new light on the importance of DBS mechanisms in BGTH brain network models of neurodegenerative disorders.

Impact of Deep Brain Stimulation on Gait in Parkinson Disease: A Kinematic Study

Impact of Deep Brain Stimulation on Gait in Parkinson Disease: A Kinematic Study

Instability of speech in Parkinson disease patients with subthalamic nucleus deep brain stimulation

IntroductionThe impact of deep brain stimulation (DBS) on speech rhythm and its mechanism remains unclear. We investigated speech rhythm characteristics of patients with Parkinson's disease (PD) treated with subthalamic nucleus (STN) DBS to understand the underlying pathophysiology better. MethodsWe enrolled a total of 105 participants and evaluated speech rhythm performances among patients with PD who had undergone STN-DBS (the PD-DBS group), patients with PD treated only with medication (the PD-Med group), patients with cerebellar ataxia (the CA group), and healthy controls (the HC group). Each participant was asked to repeat the syllable/pa/at a comfortable self-chosen steady pace. A widely-used software (the Motor Speech Profile) program performed an acoustic analysis. ResultsCompared to the PD-Med and HC groups, speech rate instability (DDKjit) was significantly higher in the PD-DBS and CA groups (p < 0.01). However, after DBS was turned off, the DDKjit of the PD-DBS group improved to a level comparable to that of the PD-Med and HC groups. In contrast to the significantly higher variability of speech volume (DDKcvi) in the CA group, the PD-DBS group showed similar DDKcvi to the PD-Med and HC groups. ConclusionsSTN-DBS affects the speech rate stability of patients with PD. Speech rhythm disorders caused by STN-DBS were phenotypically similar to that in CA in terms of interval variability but different regarding amplitude variability. Further studies are warranted to elucidate the underlying pathophysiology of speech rhythm disorders in PD patients treated with DBS.

Impact of deep brain stimulation on quality of life and motor symptoms in Parkinson's disease and X-linked dystonia parkinsonism: The Philippine experience

Background and objectivesDeep brain stimulation (DBS) is indisputable in improving motor symptoms of Parkinson's Disease (PD) and X-Linked Dystonia Parkinsonism (XDP)(4,9,22,23,26). However, a discrepancy between this improvement and the perceived quality of life (QoL) has been observed. This study aims to investigate changes and correlation between quality of life, motor symptoms and medication dosing. MethodologyThis prospective observational study enrolled 13 patients (6 PD, 7 XDP) who underwent DBS from 2017 to 2018. Quality of life changes were determined by Parkinson's Disease - 39 (PDQ-39 English and Filipino versions) at baseline, 6 months and 12 month after DBS. Motor symptoms and medication dosing were also evaluated within the same period and correlated with QoL changes. Results and discussionThere is a significant reduction of PDQ-39 mean scores[F(1.06,11.64) = 18.235; p = 0.001; ηp2 = 0.624] between baseline and 6 months among XDP patients (p = 0.018) and baseline and 12 months among PD patients (p = 0.027) and XDP patients (p < 0.001). Specific domains with significant improvement were stigma, cognition, mobility, ADLs, communication and bodily discomfort. Correlating these with changes in motor symptoms, only mobility for PD and ADLs for XDP were positively related. ConclusionThis study has shown the positive impact of DBS in improving QoL among PD and XDP patients over a 12-month period.

Structural changes in brains of patients with disorders of consciousness treated with deep brain stimulation

Disorders of consciousness (DOC) are one of the major consequences after anoxic or traumatic brain injury. So far, several studies have described the regaining of consciousness in DOC patients using deep brain stimulation (DBS). However, these studies often lack detailed data on the structural and functional cerebral changes after such treatment. The aim of this study was to conduct a volumetric analysis of specific cortical and subcortical structures to determine the impact of DBS after functional recovery of DOC patients. Five DOC patients underwent unilateral DBS electrode implantation into the centromedian parafascicular complex of the thalamic intralaminar nuclei. Consciousness recovery was confirmed using the Rappaport Disability Rating and the Coma/Near Coma scale. Brain MRI volumetric measurements were done prior to the procedure, then approximately a year after, and finally 7 years after the implementation of the electrode. The volumetric analysis included changes in regional cortical volumes and thickness, as well as in subcortical structures. Limbic cortices (parahippocampal and cingulate gyrus) and paralimbic cortices (insula) regions showed a significant volume increase and presented a trend of regional cortical thickness increase 1 and 7 years after DBS. The volumes of related subcortical structures, namely the caudate, the hippocampus as well as the amygdala, were significantly increased 1 and 7 years after DBS, while the putamen and nucleus accumbens presented with volume increase. Volume increase after DBS could be a result of direct DBS effects, or a result of functional recovery. Our findings are in accordance with the results of very few human studies connecting DBS and brain volume increase. Which mechanisms are behind the observed brain changes and whether structural changes are caused by consciousness recovery or DBS in patients with DOC is still a matter of debate.

Impact of deep brain stimulation of the subthalamic nucleus on natural language in patients with Parkinson's disease.

In addition to the typical motor symptoms, a majority of patients suffering from Parkinson's disease experience language impairments. Deep Brain Stimulation of the subthalamic nucleus robustly reduces motor dysfunction, but its impact on language skills remains ambiguous. To elucidate the impact of subthalamic deep brain stimulation on natural language production, we systematically analyzed language samples from fourteen individuals (three female / eleven male, average age 66.43 ± 7.53 years) with Parkinson's disease in the active (ON) versus inactive (OFF) stimulation condition. Significant ON-OFF differences were considered as stimulation effects. To localize their neuroanatomical origin within the subthalamic nucleus, they were correlated with the volume of tissue activated by therapeutic stimulation. Word and clause production speed increased significantly under active stimulation. These enhancements correlated with the volume of tissue activated within the associative part of the subthalamic nucleus, but not with that within the dorsolateral motor part, which again correlated with motor improvement. Language error rates were lower in the ON vs. OFF condition, but did not correlate with electrode localization. No significant changes in further semantic or syntactic language features were detected in the current study. The findings point towards a facilitation of executive language functions occurring rather independently from motor improvement. Given the presumed origin of this stimulation effect within the associative part of the subthalamic nucleus, this could be due to co-stimulation of the prefrontal-subthalamic circuit.

Pattern theory of self and situating moral aspects: the need to include authenticity, autonomy and responsibility in understanding the effects of deep brain stimulation

The aims of this paper are to: (1) identify the best framework for comprehending multidimensional impact of deep brain stimulation (DBS) on the self; (2) identify weaknesses of this framework; (3) propose refinements to it; (4) in pursuing (3), show why and how this framework should be extended with additional moral aspects and demonstrate their interrelations; (5) define how moral aspects relate to the framework; (6) show the potential consequences of including moral aspects on evaluating DBS’s impact on patients’ selves. Regarding (1), I argue that the pattern theory of self (PTS) can be regarded as such a framework. In realizing (2) and (3), I indicate that most relevant issues concerning PTS that require resolutions are ontological issues, including the persistence question, the “specificity problem”, and finding lacking relevant aspects of the self. In realizing (4), I identify aspects of the self not included in PTS which are desperately needed to investigate the full range of potentially relevant DBS-induced changes—authenticity, autonomy, and responsibility, and conclude that how we define authenticity will have implications for our concept of autonomy, which in turn will determine how we think about responsibility. Concerning (5), I discuss a complex relation between moral aspects and PTS—on one hand, they serve as the lens through which a particular self-pattern can be evaluated; on the other, they are, themselves, products of dynamical interactions of various self-aspects. Finally, I discuss (6), demonstrating novel way of understanding the effects of DBS on patients’ selves.

The Effects of Deep Brain Stimulation of the Subthalamic Nucleus on Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor, Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor, and Glial Cell Line-Derived Neurotrophic Factor in a Rat Model of Parkinson’s Disease

Objective: Deep brain stimulation (DBS) of the subthalamic nucleus (STN) has evolved as a powerful therapeutic alternative for the treatment of Parkinson’s disease (PD). Despite its clinical efficacy, the mechanisms of action have remained poorly understood. In addition to the immediate symptomatic effects, long-term neuroprotective effects have been suggested. Those may be mediated through neurotrophic factors (NFs) like vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), and glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor (GDNF). Here, the impact of DBS on the expression of NFs was analysed in a rat model of PD. Methods: Unilateral 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA) lesioned rats received DBS in the STN using an implantable microstimulation system, sham DBS in the STN, or no electrode placement. Continuous unilateral STN-DBS (current intensity 50 µA, frequency 130 Hz, and pulse width 52 µs) was conducted for 14 days. Rats were then sacrificed and brains shock frozen. Striata and motor cortices were dissected with a cryostat. Levels of VEGF, BDNF, and GDNF were analysed, both by quantitative PCR and colorimetric ELISA. Results: PCR revealed a significant upregulation of only BDNF mRNA in the ipsilateral striata of the DBS group, when compared to the sham-stimulated group. There was no significant increase in VEGF mRNA or GDNF mRNA. ELISA analysis showed augmentations of BDNF, VEGF, as well as GDNF protein in the ipsilateral striata after DBS compared to sham stimulation. In the motor cortex, significant increases after DBS were observed for BDNF only, not for the other 2 NFs. Conclusions: The upregulation of trophic factors induced by STN-DBS may participate in its long-term therapeutic efficacy and potentially neuroprotective effects.