Pilot Study of Acute Behavioral Effects of Pallidal Burst Stimulation in Parkinson's Disease

Abstract Background Burst‐patterned pallidal deep brain stimulation (DBS) in an animal model of Parkinson's disease (PD) yields significantly prolonged therapeutic benefit compared to conventional continuous DBS, but its value in patients remains unclear. Objectives The aims were to evaluate the safety and tolerability of acute (<2 hours) burst DBS in PD patients and to evaluate preliminary clinical effectiveness relative to conventional DBS. Methods Six PD patients were studied with DBS OFF, conventional DBS , and burst DBS . Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale III ( UPDRS ‐ III) and proactive inhibition (using stop‐signal task) were evaluated for each condition. Results Burst and conventional DBS were equally tolerated without significant adverse events. Both stimulation patterns provided equivalent significant UPDRS‐III reduction and increased proactive inhibition relative to DBS OFF. Conclusions This pilot study supports the safety and tolerability of burst DBS, with acute effects similar to conventional DBS. Further larger‐scale studies are warranted given the potential benefits of burst DBS due to decreased total energy delivery. © 2024 The Author(s). Movement Disorders published by Wiley Periodicals LLC on behalf of International Parkinson and Movement Disorder Society.