Efficacy and safety of combined deep brain stimulation with capsulotomy for comorbid motor and psychiatric symptoms in Tourette’s syndrome: Experience and evidence

To evaluate the efficacy and safety of combined deep brain stimulation (DBS) with capsulotomy for comorbid motor and psychiatric symptoms in patients with Tourette's syndrome (TS). This retrospective cohort study consecutively enrolled TS patients with comorbid motor and psychiatric symptoms who were treated with combined DBS and anterior capsulotomy at our center. Longitudinal motor, psychiatric, and cognitive outcomes and quality of life were assessed. In addition, a systematic review and meta-analysis were performed to summarize the current experience with the available evidence. In total, 5 eligible patients in our cohort and 26 summarized patients in 6 cohorts were included. After a mean 18-month follow-up, our cohort reported that motor symptoms significantly improved by 62.4 % (P = 0.005); psychiatric symptoms of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) and anxiety significantly improved by 87.7 % (P < 0.001) and 78.4 % (P = 0.009); quality of life significantly improved by 61.9 % (P = 0.011); and no significant difference was found in cognitive function (all P > 0.05). Combined surgery resulted in greater improvements in psychiatric outcomes and quality of life than DBS alone. The synthesized findings suggested significant improvements in tics (MD: 57.92, 95 % CI: 41.28–74.56, P < 0.001), OCD (MD: 21.91, 95 % CI: 18.67–25.15, P < 0.001), depression (MD: 18.32, 95 % CI: 13.26–23.38, P < 0.001), anxiety (MD: 13.83, 95 % CI: 11.90–15.76, P < 0.001), and quality of life (MD: 48.22, 95 % CI: 43.68–52.77, P < 0.001). Individual analysis revealed that the pooled treatment effects on motor symptoms, psychiatric symptoms, and quality of life were 78.6 %, 84.5–87.9 %, and 83.0 %, respectively. The overall pooled rate of adverse events was 50.0 %, and all of these adverse events were resolved or alleviated with favorable outcomes. Combined DBS with capsulotomy is effective for relieving motor and psychiatric symptoms in TS patients, and its safety is acceptable. However, the optimal candidate should be considered, and additional experience is still necessary.