Stereotactic Thalamotomy for Hairdresser's Dystonia: A Case Series

BACKGROUND: Hairdresser's dystonia is a rarely reported form of focal hand dystonia, and the clinical course and treatment remains poorly understood. OBJECTIVES: The aim of this report was to clarify the impact of thalamotomy on hairdresser's dystonia. METHODS: Four consecutive patients with hairdresser's task-specific dystonia evaluated at Tokyo Women's Medical University Hospital between 2008 and 2013 were treated with stereotactic thalamotomy, and were recruited for this case series. RESULTS: The mean age at the onset of symptoms was 37.25 ± 10.64 years, the median duration of symptoms was 4.25 ± 1.3 years, and the mean follow-up period was 17 ± 12.37 months. Two of the 4 patients returned to work with significant improvement following the stereotactic thalamotomy and the beneficial effects persisted for the duration of their clinical follow-up. The other 2 patients experienced transient improvements for up to 3 months. Surgical complications included only dysarthria in 2 patients, and did not interfere with their daily activities. No patients experienced a deterioration of dystonic symptoms after thalamotomy. CONCLUSION: Although the benefits of thalamotomy remain vulnerable to incorrect or insufficient coagulation, stereotactic thalamotomy may be a feasible and effective procedure for patients with hairdresser's dystonia.