Controlled Trial With Deep Brain Stimulation in Patients With Early Parkinson's Disease (EARLYSTIM)

Earlystim Study: Patients are randomized either to medical treatment or subthalamic stimulation. The observation period was 2 years. The primary outcome criterium: PDQ-39.

Post study Follow up studies: After the 24 months observation period also BMT patients could be operated and all patients will be observed for 10 years or longer to elucidate whether earlier stimulation has advantages (or drawbacks) compared to later stimulation.

Parkinsons' disease is one of the most disabling chronic neurological diseases. It can be treated sufficiently until motor complications with fluctuations of mobility and dyskinesias develop. The quality of life and the social and occupational functioning is relentlessly deteriorating with longer disease duration once the complications of conservative therapy develop. High-frequency stimulation of the subthalamic nucleus especially improves the motor complications of Parkinson's disease and preliminary data suggest that also the quality of life and psychosocial handicap are improved. So far this therapy is only used for patients which have already undergone personal, professional and social degradation due to motor complications of the disease. The aim of this study is to assess the use of this therapy in earlier stages of the disease, when motor complications have just developed and before patients are significantly affected in their social and occupational functioning.

The main study (Earlystim) was finished in March 2012 and published in February 2013 (Schuepbach WM, Rau J, Knudsen K, et al. Neurostimulation for Parkinson's disease with early motor complications. N Engl J Med. Feb 14 2013;368(7):610-622.) Patients, who were treated with BMT only in the Earlystim Study were privileged to be operated after the 24 months and a follow up phase of 5 years was planned to elucidate whether earlier stimulation has advantages (or drawbacks) compared to later stimulation.

As operated patients fare better in terms of quality of life and other outcomes (see publication), it will be important to know if patients who are operated earlier keep an advantage in all thoses parameters over those who were operated later or if those operated later will catch up after surgery. Also the pattern of adverse events among earlier and later operated patients may differ. These issues can be addressed with the post-study follow-up (PSFU) studies of the patients of the Earlystim trial. The results of these investigations elucidate longterm issues of DBS in PD and may affect the recommendations of surgery for patients.