ArticleBMJ case reports2020
Directional sensory thalamus deep brain stimulation in poststroke refractory pain.
Article in BMJ case reports, 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 5 papers.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
5 citing papers in PubMed, 6 citations in OpenAlex.
- Electromagnetic neuromodulation for chronic pain: historical context, contemporary modalities, and evidence gaps.Frontiers in pain research (Lausanne, Switzerland) · 2026Review
- Case Report: Multidimensional Analgesia via Asymmetric Dual-Target Deep Brain Stimulation of the Periaqueductal Gray and Ventral Posterior Thalamus in Central Post-stroke Pain.Neurology and therapy · 2025Article
- Central post-stroke pain: advances in clinical and preclinical research.Stroke and vascular neurology · 2025Review
- Network targets for therapeutic brain stimulation: towards personalized therapy for pain.Frontiers in pain research (Lausanne, Switzerland) · 2023Article
- Deep Brain Stimulation, Stereotactic Radiosurgery and High-Intensity Focused Ultrasound Targeting the Limbic Pain Matrix: A Comprehensive Review.Pain and therapy · 2022Review
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
4 authors at 1 institution in 2 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Thalamic deep brain stimulation (DBS) for chronic pain is performed in selected patients with a variable success rate. We report the use of recently developed directional DBS in a patient with hemibody central poststroke pain (CPSP) and its added value in the induction of pleasant, pain-distracting paresthesia's throughout the contralateral body side. A 68-year-old man suffered from multiple strokes in the left hemisphere 11 years before presentation, resulting in medically refractory right-sided hemibody CPSP. He was implanted with a directional DBS electrode in the left ventrocaudal nucleus of the thalamus. A directional single-segment contact configuration produced a better improvement throughout the contralateral body side than ring-mode and other directional configurations. Treatment led to a reduction of almost 50% in pain. This case demonstrates the value of directional DBS in the treatment of chronic pain, as steering increases selectivity and reduces side effects in a small target area surrounded by structures with high functional diversity.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.