Neurology · 3 h ago
Remote DBS Programming Noninferior to In-Person Follow-Up in Small Parkinson’s Trial
A multicenter randomized noninferiority trial assigned 52 adults with Parkinson’s disease after bilateral subthalamic deep brain stimulation to remote or in-person follow-up programming. At 90 days, motor outcomes met the prespecified noninferiority criterion, with broadly comparable secondary outcomes and no clear short-term safety signal.
- Randomized trial enrolled 52 adults at six German centers.
- Remote follow-up met the prespecified 90-day noninferiority criterion.
- All participants had initial in-person postoperative programming.
- Longer-term outcomes were not reported in the abstract.
This prospective, open-label trial at six German centers compared remote with conventional in-person follow-up programming during the first 90 days after bilateral subthalamic nucleus deep brain stimulation for idiopathic Parkinson’s disease. All participants first received standardized inpatient postoperative programming. Fifty-two adults were randomized; the per-protocol analysis included 26 in the in-person group and 22 in the remote group. The primary endpoint was the MDS-UPDRS Part III score at 90 days in the medication-on, stimulation-on state, with a prespecified noninferiority margin of 5 points.
The median between-group difference in the primary endpoint was −2.5 points (95% CI, −9.0 to 2.0), meeting the trial’s stated noninferiority criterion. Secondary clinical and patient-reported outcomes were broadly comparable. Serious adverse events occurred at similar frequencies, and there were no deaths.
The findings support remote follow-up programming as a potential option during early postoperative care when initial programming has been conducted in person. The trial was small and covers only the first three months after surgery; the abstract does not provide detailed adverse-event data or longer-term outcomes. The results do not establish equivalence beyond the studied period or population.
In practice
For adults with Parkinson’s disease who have undergone bilateral subthalamic DBS, remote programming may be an option for follow-up during the first 90 days after surgery when standardized initial postoperative programming has taken place in person. In this small randomized trial, motor outcomes met the prespecified noninferiority criterion and no clear short-term safety signal was reported. The evidence is limited to 52 participants, the per-protocol analysis included 48, and follow-up was only three months; it does not establish longer-term outcomes or support extrapolation to other DBS populations or care pathways.
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Movement Disorders: Remote Versus In‐Person Follow‐up Programming After Subthalamic Deep Brain Stimulation for Parkinson's Disease: A Multicenter Randomized Noninferiority Trial ↗This is an automated AI-condensed summary that has not yet been reviewed by an editor. Always consult the full item at the original source.