No abstract

Background Headache is among the most prevalent causes of disability worldwide. Non‐pharmacologic interventions, including neuromodulation therapies, have been proposed in patients who are treatment resistant or intolerant to medications. Objective To perform a systematic review on the use of transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) and transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) for the treatment of specific headache disorders (ie, migraine, tension, cluster, posttraumatic). Methods Data sources: Ovid MEDLINE, Cochrane Central Register of Clinical Trials, Embase, Scopus, PsycINFO. Data extraction: All references were reviewed by 2 independent researchers (3039 abstracts, duplicates removed). Records were selected by inclusion criteria for participants (adults 18‐65 with primary or secondary headaches), interventions (TMS and tDCS applied as headache treatment), comparators (sham or alternative standard of care), and study type (cohort, case‐control, and randomized controlled trials [RCT]). Studies were assessed using the Cochrane Risk of Bias Tool and overall quality determined through the GRADE Tool. A structured synthesis was performed due to heterogeneity of participants and methods. Results Thirty‐four studies were included: 16 rTMS, 6 TMS (excluding rTMS), and 12 tDCS. The majority investigated treatment for migraine (19/22 TMS, 8/12 tDCS). Quality of evidence ranged from very low to high. Conclusion Of all TMS and tDCS modalities, rTMS is most promising with moderate evidence that it contributes to reductions in headache frequency, duration, intensity, abortive medication use, depression, and functional impairment. However, only few studies reported changes greater than sham treatment. Further high‐quality RCTs with standardized protocols are required for each specific headache disorder to validate a treatment effect. Registration Number: PROSPERO 2017 CRD42017076232.

A 61-year-old man sustained a mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) following a pedestrian versus vehicle traffic accident. Post injury, he began to experience symptoms including light-headedness, spatial disorientation, nausea, fatigue and prominent dizziness brought on by postural change, physical activity or eye movements. Symptoms of dizziness persisted for over 5 years, despite numerous extensive and rigorous vestibular and vision therapy regimens. All investigations suggested normal peripheral and central vestibular functioning. The patient underwent 10 sessions of repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) treatment, with stimulation of the left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex at 70% of resting motor threshold and a frequency of 10 Hz. Dizziness symptom severity and frequency were reduced by greater than 50% at 3 months post treatment, with a clinically significant reduction of dizziness disability from 40 to 21 points on the Dizziness Handicap Inventory. We propose rTMS as a safe, effective and cost-effective treatment option for patients who experience persistent post-traumatic dizziness secondary to mTBI.