Deep Brain Stimulation of Nucleus Accumbens for Methamphetamine Addiction: Two Case Reports

Background Methamphetamine (MA) addiction is one of the most prevalent socioeconomic and health problems worldwide. In recent years, deep brain stimulation (DBS) has increasingly been used for the treatment of addiction. Case Description This study reports on 2 MA-dependent patients who received DBS of the nucleus accumbens (NAc). During the approximately 2-year follow-up period, one patient (A) remained abstinent and presented with positive emotional experiences, whereas the other (B) had no significant psychobehavioral changes during stimulation at low-to-moderate voltages and subsequently relapsed. Through coregistration of preoperative magnetic resonance imaging with postoperative computed tomography/magnetic resonance imaging, the DBS electrode of patient A was confirmed to be accurately implanted in the NAc, whereas one side of the electrode of patient B deviated from the target. Conclusions These case reports demonstrate that NAc-DBS maybe a possible treatment option for MA addiction.