Table 2:
Characteristics of Included Studies
| Author, Year | Country | Study Design | Enrolment Time Frame | N | Intervention(s) | MRgFUS Target | Outcomes of Interest Reported (Time of Evaluation) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kim et al, 201746 | Republic of Korea | Retrospective analysis (chart review) | 1995–2014 | 59 | MRgFUS DBS RF thalamotomy |
VIM | Degree of tremor improvement (1 month, 12 months) Recurrence Side effects/complications |
| Schreglmann et al, 201742 | Switzerland | Prospective, uncontrolled, single-centre, interventional study | NR | 6 | MRgFUS | CTT | Tremor severity (6 months) QUEST (6 months) Side effects/complications AE |
| Zaaroor et al, 201745 | Israel | Single cohort | Nov. 2013–Jan. 2016 | 18a | MRgFUS | VIM | Tremor severity (1 month, 6 months) QUEST (1 month, 6 months) Recurrence AE |
| Elias et al, 201638 | Canada, Japan, Republic of Korea, United States | Prospective, sham-controlled, multicentre RCT | Aug. 2013–Sep. 2014 | 76 | MRgFUS Sham MRgFUS |
VIM | Tremor severity (3 months) QUEST (3 months) Recurrence (12 months) Side effects/complications AE |
| Gallay et al, 201639 | Switzerland | Single cohort | NR | 21 | MRgFUS | CTT | Tremor severity (12 months) AE |
| Huss et al, 201640 | United States | Retrospective analysis (chart review) | Jan. 2004–Jul. 2013 | 85 | MRgFUS DBS |
VIM | Tremor severity (pre- vs. post-operative)b QUEST (pre- vs. post-operative)b Side effects/complications AE |
| Chang et al, 201536 | Republic of Korea | Single cohort | Mar. 2012–Nov. 2012 | 11 | MRgFUS | VIM | Tremor severity (6 months) AE |
| Elias et al, 201337,43,44 | United States | Open-label uncontrolled study (phase I) | Feb. 2011–Dec. 2011 | 15 | MRgFUS | VIM | Tremor severity (3 months, 12 months) QUEST (12 months) Side effects/complications AE |
| Lipsman et al, 201341 | Canada | Single cohort | May 2012–Jan. 2013 | 4 | MRgFUS | VIM | Tremor severity (1 month, 3 months) Side effects/complications AE |
Abbreviations: AE, adverse events; CTT, cerebellothalamic tract of the posterior thalamic area; DBS, deep brain stimulation; MRgFUS, magnetic resonance-guided focused ultrasound; NR, not reported; QUEST, Quality of Life in Essential Tremor questionnaire; RCT, randomized controlled trial; RF, radiofrequency; VIM, ventral intermediate nucleus of the thalamus.
The study population included people with tremor conditions other than essential tremor (n = 12); some results were reported separately by condition.
For deep brain stimulation, the timing of postoperative measurement varied from 3 to 24 months (mean: 13.1 months) after the device was optimized. For MRgFUS thalamotomy, postoperative measurement occurred at 12 months, except for n = 1, who was assessed at 3 months (mean: 11.8 months).