Self-Reported Executive Functioning in Everyday Life in Parkinson's Disease after Three Months of Subthalamic Deep Brain Stimulation

Objective. studies on the effect of subthalamic deep brain stimulation (stn-dbs) on executive functioning in parkinson's disease (pd) are still controversial. in this study we compared self-reported daily executive functioning in pd patients before and after three months of stn-dbs. we also examined whether executive functioning in everyday life was associated with motor symptoms,apathy,and psychiatric symptoms. method. 40 pd patients were examined with the behavior rating inventory of executive function-adult version (brief-a),the symptom checklist 90-revised (scl-90-r),and the apathy evaluation scale (aes-s). results. pd patients reported significant improvement in daily life executive functioning after 3 months of stn-dbs. anxiety scores significantly declined,while other psychiatric symptoms remained unchanged. the improvement of self-reported executive functioning did not correlate with motor improvement after stn-dbs. apathy scores remained unchanged after surgery. only preoperative depressed mood had predictive value to the improvement of executive function and appears to prevent potentially favorable outcomes from stn-dbs on some aspects of executive function. conclusion. pd patients being screened for stn-dbs surgery should be evaluated with regard to self-reported executive functioning. depressive symptoms in presurgical pd patients should be treated. complementary information about daily life executive functioning in pd patients might enhance further treatment planning of stn-dbs. © 2015 uyen ha gia pham et al.