Quality of life outcomes after deep brain stimulation in acquired dystonia: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Background Dystonia is a condition that affects the ability to control the movement and function of the body's muscles. It can cause not only physical problems, but also mental problems, resulting in impaired health-related quality of life (HRQoL). However, the effect of deep brain stimulation on quality of life in acquired dystonia remains unclear.Methods We conducted a systematic literature review from January 2000 to October 2022?determined the eligible studies, and performed a meta-analysis of HRQoL outcomes based on the Short-Form Health Survey-36 (SF-36) after DBS to evaluate the effects of DBS on physical and mental QoL.Results A total of 14 studies met the inclusion criteria and were systematically reviewed. A comprehensive meta-analysis was performed for 9 studies that reported physical and psychological data or physical component summary (PCS), or mental component summary (MCS) for SF-36. The mean (SD) age at DBS implantation was 34.29 (10.3) years, and the follow-up period after implantation was 2.21 (2.80) years. The random effects model meta-analysis revealed that both physical and mental domains of the SF-36 improved following DBS. There was no statistically significant difference between the physical domains (effect size=1.34; p<0.0001) and the mental domains (effect size=1.38; p<0.0001).Conclusion This is the first meta-analysis that demonstrates significant benefits in HRQoL following DBS in patients with acquired dystonia. There were significant improvements in both physical QoL and mental QoL.

Automated summary

This study is the first meta-analysis demonstrating significant improvements in health-related quality of life in patients with acquired dystonia following deep brain stimulation (DBS). Both physical and mental aspects of life quality showed significant improvements after DBS.