To assess the effectiveness of slow repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) as an adjunctive treatment for drug-resistant epilepsy.Forty-three patients with drug-resistant epilepsy from eight Italian Centers underwent a randomized, double-blind, sham-controlled, crossover study on the clinical and EEG effects of slow rTMS. The stimulus frequency was 0.3 Hz. One thousand stimuli per day were given at the resting motor threshold intensity for 5 consecutive days, with a round coil at the vertex."Active" rTMS was no better than placebo for seizure reduction. However, it decreased interictal EEG epileptiform abnormalities significantly (p < 0.05) in one-third of the patients, which supports a detectable biologic effect. No correlation linked the rTMS effects on seizure frequency to syndrome or anatomic classification, seizure type, EEG changes, or resting motor threshold (an index of motor cortex excitability).Although the antiepileptic action was not significant (p > 0.05), the individual EEG reactivity to "active" rTMS may be encouraging for the development of more-powerful, noninvasive neuromodulatory strategies.

Slow repetitive TMS for drug-resistant epilepsy: clinical and EEG findings of a placebo-controlled trial

QUARTARONE, Angelo;CRUPI, Domenica;LAGANA', Angelina;
2007-01-01

Abstract

To assess the effectiveness of slow repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) as an adjunctive treatment for drug-resistant epilepsy.Forty-three patients with drug-resistant epilepsy from eight Italian Centers underwent a randomized, double-blind, sham-controlled, crossover study on the clinical and EEG effects of slow rTMS. The stimulus frequency was 0.3 Hz. One thousand stimuli per day were given at the resting motor threshold intensity for 5 consecutive days, with a round coil at the vertex."Active" rTMS was no better than placebo for seizure reduction. However, it decreased interictal EEG epileptiform abnormalities significantly (p < 0.05) in one-third of the patients, which supports a detectable biologic effect. No correlation linked the rTMS effects on seizure frequency to syndrome or anatomic classification, seizure type, EEG changes, or resting motor threshold (an index of motor cortex excitability).Although the antiepileptic action was not significant (p > 0.05), the individual EEG reactivity to "active" rTMS may be encouraging for the development of more-powerful, noninvasive neuromodulatory strategies.
2007
File in questo prodotto:
File Dimensione Formato  
lagana.pdf

solo utenti autorizzati

Descrizione: Articolo principale
Tipologia: Versione Editoriale (PDF)
Licenza: Tutti i diritti riservati (All rights reserved)
Dimensione 115.2 kB
Formato Adobe PDF
115.2 kB Adobe PDF   Visualizza/Apri   Richiedi una copia
Pubblicazioni consigliate

I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.

Utilizza questo identificativo per citare o creare un link a questo documento: https://hdl.handle.net/11570/1888472
Citazioni
  • ???jsp.display-item.citation.pmc??? 33
  • Scopus 122
  • ???jsp.display-item.citation.isi??? 99
social impact