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Ivan - Dick tells me he responded to your question about tremor, but didn't talk about freezing or painful muscle tightening, so I'll add my two cents' worth here. In a message dated 97-01-29 08:44:21 EST, you write: > The freezes include >extremely PAINFUL >muscle tightening , from the sides of my head to my toes and arches. The extremely painful muscle tightening you describe sounds like the dystonia Dick had. If you've noticed the recent postings about wearing-off dyskinesia and peak-dose dyskinesia, you're aware that dyskinesia (involuntary movements) is a common problem in PD. Dick had what his doctor calls a sub-class of dyskinesia - dystonia - which is the tightening and twisting of the muscles. That may be what you're describing. That condition was helped considerably by the pallidal stimulation, and presumably would be reduced by pallidotomy, too. However, Dick still has a touch of dystonia from time to time - it's just not nearly as severe as before. We know people who had the muscle cramps all over their bodies, just as you talk about, who still have the cramping post- pallidotomy, just to a lesser extent. When you meniton "freezing," do you mean the kind where you are suddenly locked into place and can't move? Dick had only occasional trouble with that prior to surgery, and is beginning to have more frequent occurrences now as the disease progresses. Ask your neurosurgeon which symptoms are targeted by pallidotomy. He/she will be able to tell you specifically which symptoms are usually improved, and which they don't expect to be able to help. Dick was told that the pallidal stim, like pallidotomy, does not specifically target tremor, yet he had probably the best results in that area. I suppose that's because it was his worst symptom. The way we have described the surgery to friends is to say, "It's certainly not a cure, and if you asked specifically about the symptoms - "do you still have tremor?" (yes), "Do you still have dystonia?" (yes), they're all still there. But they're so greatly reduced that his quality of life is much improved from before. The disease continues to progress, of course, but the surgery has bought him several more years of useful life. I believe if he had been able to have the surgery a couple of years earlier, he might not have had to go on disability so soon. I didn't want to paint too rosy a picture, yet in my caution, I don't want to discourage you, either. People seem to have mixed results from the surgery, but the vast majority find it to be a wonderful improvement. One person we know who had the surgery said, "It gave me back ME." Again, good luck. Also, ask your neurosurgeon if he can give you the names of others who have had the surgery and allow you to call them. Our doctor does that, and we have talked to a number of anxious patients prior to surgery and been able to tell them what to expect. Almost anyone who has had the surgery would be happy to talk to you. Margie Swindler [log in to unmask]