Denial of Hardware-Related Skin Erosion in Patients with Effective Deep Brain Stimulation: A Novel Phenomenon
Year: 2026
Type: article
Study design: Case Report
Abstract: INTRODUCTION: Deep brain stimulation (DBS) is an established therapy that can significantly improve patients' quality of life in several disorders. Besides its benefits, hardware-related problems including erosion and wound infections are well known problems. In the present series, we describe a novel phenomenon manifesting as denial for hardware-related skin erosion in patients with movement disorders benefiting from DBS in various targets. METHODS: Patients were collected from two large DBS cohorts over a period of 28 years. The skin erosion was identified upon the occasion of a routine follow-up with the patients apparently being unaware/not noticing its occurrence. Demographic, clinical, and operative data were analyzed. Additionally, the hardware-related skin erosion and its time of diagnosis, as well as the consecutive treatment, were registered. RESULTS: Overall, 5 patients were identified with denial for hardware-related skin erosion. Three were men; two were women. The mean age at surgery was 66 years (range, 54-78). Three patients had dystonia; 2 patients had Parkinson's disease. DBS targets were the globus pallidus internus and various thalamic nuclei. All patients benefited markedly from chronic DBS (mean improvement of 76.7% according to the specific rating scales). The hardware-related skin erosion was diagnosed at a median follow-up of 18 months after DBS implantation (range, 5-264 months). Despite multiple surgical attempts at preservation, the neurostimulation system was ultimately explanted in 3 patients. CONCLUSION: Denial toward hardware-related skin erosion in DBS, most probably denial, is a rare but potentially serious complication during chronic DBS.
DOI: 10.1159/000550653
Institutions: Medizinische Hochschule Hannover, Umeå University
Language: English
Subfield: Neurology
Field: Medicine
Domain: Health Sciences
Open Access status: hybrid
OpenAlex ID: W7126073946
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