A sham stimulation-controlled trial of rTMS of the unaffected hemisphere in stroke patients
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Status:
Trial complete. Results published in May 2005.
Purpose:
To investigate the efficacy of slow-frequency repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) to the unaffected hemisphere in decreasing interhemispheric inhibition of the lesioned hemisphere and improving motor function in stroke patients.
Interventions:
Electrical stimulation
This category includes any form of electrical stimulation intended to improve motor function or pain after stroke.
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Location(s):
Boston, MA & Brazil.
Year Finished:
2004
Design:
Crossover, sham, stimulation-controlled, double-blind study.
Inclusion Criteria
Written consent.
Patient Involvement:
Participants received three sessions of rTMS (1 Hz, 100% of motor threshold, 600 pulses) to the unaffected hemisphere over the primary motor (real or sham rTMS) and over the premotor cortex (real rTMS). The sessions were randomized and counterbalanced across participants and each session separated by 1 hour to minimize carryover effects.
Primary Outcome:
The following tests were run to evaluate the motor function of the affected hand: 1) simple reaction time (sRT), 2) four-choice reaction time (cRT), 3) Purdue Pegboard Test, and 4) finger tapping. Each patient was tested at baseline and after sham, motor, and premotor rTMS.
Results:
Patients showed a significant decrease in simple and choice reaction time, sRT (p = 0.043) and cRT (p = 0.045) and improved performance of the Purdue Pegboard test with their affected hand after rTMS of the motor cortex in the intact hemisphere (6.2 +/- 2.9; p = 0.006) as compared with sham rTMS condition (4.2 +/- 2.4; p = 0.002). For the finger tapping test, there was no main effect of the rTMS condition on the finger-tapping test (p = 0.76) and while performance tended to be better after real motor rTMS when compared with sham stimulation, this effect was small (<5%) and variable.
Source of Information:
Neurology. 2005 May 24;64(10):1802-4.
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This information last updated on: 8/19/2005
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