Effects of spinal cord stimulation on the cortical somatosensory evoked potentials in failed back surgery syndrome patients

Localization of cervical and cervicomedullary stimulation leads for pain treatment using median nerve somatosensory evoked potential collision testing

“…12,31,36 Several studies have demonstrated that SCS reduces the amplitudes of short and midlatency SSEPs, and this decrease of primary somatosensory cortical activity may contribute to the analgesic effect of SCS. 4,21,30,40 We have taken further advantage of routine intraoperative SSEP monitoring to correctly lateralize and optimize electrode position during cervical and cervicomedullary SCS surgery.…”

Cortical Evoked Potentials Used for Placement of a Laminotomy Lead Array: A Case Report

“…Somatosensory EPs have been used to predict overall response to spinal cord stimulation based on normal central conduction time (2), and for somatotopic mapping for DREZ lesions (3–5). Cortical and subcortical EP amplitudes are increased in patients with painful cervical radiculopathy on the side of pain (6), and normalize after a year of cord stimulation (7,8). Epidural electrodes have been used for monitoring of function during spinal surgery (9,10), including the technique of stimulating from the spinal electrode and recording antidromically along peripheral nerves (11,12).…”

Spinal Stimulation for Movement Disorders

“…Similarly, in the study by Agari and Date [16] the patients displayed limited axial symptoms without any major gait abnormalities. Patients in the 2 other reports [18,19] were younger (43 and 68 years old, respectively), but their clinical characteristics were less precisely described. All these reports suggest that the quality of levodopa response may account for the level of motor effect following SCS.…”

“…SCS generates its therapeutic effect not only through electrophysiological changes at the dorsal horn level but also on deep nuclei structures of the brainstem and the forebrain [7,10,18,19]. Thus, the spinal cord, through its anatomical structure and organization, could facilitate an ascending remote effect by modulating the neuronal activities of deep brain structures.…”