Objectives: The presence of a deep brain stimulator (DBS) in a patient who develops neuropsychiatric symptoms poses unique diagnostic challenges and questions for the treating psychiatrist. Catatonia has been described only once, during DBS implantation, but has not been reported in a successfully implanted DBS patient.
Methods: We present a case of a patient with bipolar disorder and renal transplant who developed catatonia after DBS for essential tremor.
Results: The patient was successfully treated for catatonia with lorazepam and electroconvulsive therapy after careful diagnostic workup. Electroconvulsive therapy has been successfully used with DBS in a handful of cases, and certain precautions may help reduce potential risk.
Conclusions: Catatonia is a rare occurrence after DBS but when present may be safely treated with standard therapies such as lorazepam and electroconvulsive therapy.