Motor and Psychological Responses to Deep Cerebellar Stimulation in Cerebral Palsy (Correlation with Organization of Cerebellum Into Zones)

Summary

The study includes 68 cases of cerebral palsy stereotaxically operated on from 1977. Deep cerebellar stimulation treatment was performed. The motor and psychological responses to electrical stimulation of 305 points of subcortical regions of cerebellum, mostly lobus anterior were analysed. The characteristic response—slight motor jerk immediately—followed by relaxation and feeling of pleasure, even laughing, to the electrical stimulation from selected points was always found. The level of stimulating current must be adjusted individually. The higher current increased pathological posture, muscular tonus and was conducted with the state of fear. The lower current was without detectable influence on the patient. On the trajectory of electrode, nearly perpendicular to the sagittal plane were narrow areas, which recurred as the strips, from where it was possible or not to elicit characteristic response. The most convenient target is in the region of brachia conjunctiva cerebelli. Localization of the point of stimulation in respect to organization of cerebellum into sagittally oriented zones and the parameters of stimulation seem to contribute to the diversity of responses to cerebellar stimulation.