consequences of erysipellas on Parkinson and dbs settings

[Anonymous]

I was recently in hospital for 2 weeks for a severe case of erysipellas on my left leg which happens to have also a full knee prosthesis. I was bedridden for 4 weeks and cannot walk since. My neuro said everything should go back to normal with time and that it was not necessary to modify the neurostimulators' parameters. Yet, I experience painful tensions in my muscles/tendons that make walking with a walking frame a very painful experience and despite daily physiotherapy for 3 weeks, I cannot see any improvement. Could it be possible that the infection I suffered modified my general "background" and that settings that were fine before are no longer appropriate. Could such painful muscle tensions be caused by stimulation or is it just my imagination ?( my caregiver and my physiotherapist think I'm overreacting).
Thanking you in advance for your help.

MJL

[Dr. Okun]

This is an infection of group A strep. Infection and the antibiotics used to treat it can worsen PD.

It is hard to know what is going on in your case.

If there was no reason to change the settings on the DBS and they were functioning well for a long time, you may want to ask them to try the old settings again. If the new settings are causing worsening, you can simply shut off the DBS for a little while and see if you feel better.

It is trial and error and time at this point!

Hang in there.
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Michael S. Okun, M.D.