BACKGROUND/AIMS: Reports of outcomes in treating dystonia secondary to stroke 
with deep brain stimulation (DBS) are limited. We report our experience with 3 
patients, all with infarcts involving the striatum, who developed hemidystonia 
and were treated with unilateral globus pallidus interna DBS.
METHODS: Case series describing characteristics and outcomes based on the 
Burke-Fahn-Marsden Dystonia Rating Scale (BFMDRS) scores before and after DBS at 
3, 6 and at least 12 months.
RESULTS: All patients reported subjective improvements after surgery. At 1 year 
or more after surgery, none of the 3 patients displayed a measureable 
improvement in the BFMDRS movement score.
CONCLUSION: Our findings are consistent with previous reports of limited 
benefits from pallidal DBS in secondary dystonia. Future work should focus on 
predictive factors for DBS outcomes and the development of more sensitive 
assessment tools specifically for secondary dystonias as well as the exploration 
of alternative brain targets for stimulation.