Effects of Repetitive Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation Over Trunk Motor Spot on Balance Function in Stroke Patients

Abstract

ObjectiveTo assess the efficacy of high-frequency repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) on balance function in patients with chronic stroke.MethodsThirty participants with chronic stroke were enrolled in this study. High frequency (10 Hz) rTMS was delivered with butterfly-coil on trunk motor spot. Each patient received both real and sham rTMS in a random sequence. The rTMS cycles (real or sham) were composed of 10 sessions each, administered over two weeks, and separated by a 4-week washout period. Balance function was measured by Berg Balance Scale and computerized dynamic posturography to determine the effect of rTMS before and one day after the end of each treatment period, as well as at a 1-month follow-up.ResultsThe balance function was significantly improved after high frequency rTMS as compared with that after sham rTMS (p<0.05). There was no serious adverse effect in patients during the treatment period.ConclusionIn the chronic stroke patients, high frequency rTMS to the trunk motor area seems to be a helpful way to improve balance function without any specific adverse effects. Further studies are needed to identify the underlying mechanism and generate a detailed protocol.

Effects of Excitatory Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation of the Anterior Intraparietal Area in Chronic Stroke Patients

“…TMS is a widely studied tool for the treatment of post-stroke patients. Several studies have obtained promising results for treating depression [1,2], aphasia [3][4][5][6] and pain [7][8][9][10], as well as for improving motor function [2, [11][12][13][14]. Such studies are generally based upon the interhemispheric imbalance model [15], which states that the injury of one hemisphere increases the activation of the contralateral hemisphere, which, in turn, exerts a greater inhibition over the injured hemisphere [15][16][17].…”

“…Studies evaluating the effects of rTMS on motor function have typically used the primary motor cortex as the stimulation site [7,8,[11][12][13][14]20]. These studies have obtained good results with acute [13] and chronic patients [7,11,14,20]. However, direct application to the primary motor cortex may restrict the excitatory rTMS effects to the stimulated neurons since the main output of the primary cortex is directed to the muscles and not to other areas of the brain, thus reducing the effectiveness of excitatory stimulation.…”

Effects of Excitatory Repetitive Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation of the P3 Point in Chronic Stroke Patients &ndash; Case Reports

“…TMS is a widely studied tool for the treatment of post-stroke patients. Several studies have obtained promising results for treating depression [1,2], aphasia [3][4][5][6] and pain [7][8][9][10], as well as for improving motor function [2,[11][12][13][14], though the variety of results of TMS with this population requires further studies. Such studies are generally based upon the interhemispheric imbalance model [15], which states that the injury of one hemisphere increases the activation of the contralateral hemisphere, which, in turn, exerts a greater inhibition over the injured hemisphere [15][16][17].…”

Effects of Excitatory Repetitive Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation of the P3 Point in Chronic Stroke Patients—Case Reports

“…Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) is a widely studied tool for the treatment of post-stroke patients [ 1 ]. Several studies have obtained promising results in the treatment of depression [ 2 , 3 ], aphasia [ 4 , 5 , 6 , 7 ], and pain [ 8 , 9 , 10 , 11 ], as well as the improvement of motor function [ 3 , 12 , 13 , 14 , 15 ]. However, the variety of results of TMS with the post-stroke population requires further study.…”