Thursday, December 13, 2012

Transcranial magnetic stimulation at 1Hertz improves clinical symptoms in children with Tourette syn

Available online 10 December 2012
Publication year: 2012
Source:Journal of Clinical Neuroscience

Tourette syndrome (TS) is characterized by multiple motor and phonic tics. Repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) targeting the supplemental motor area (SMA) can reduce tic severity. Here, we investigated whether 1Hz rTMS targeted to the SMA could improve symptoms in children with TS. Twenty-five children with TS (aged under 16years) received 20 daily sessions of rTMS to the SMA at a frequency of 1Hz, 110% of resting motor threshold (RMT). Clinical assessment and physiological measures of the left and right RMT were conducted at different times during treatment and follow-up. After four weeks of treatment we observed statistically significant reductions on the Yale Global Tic Severity Scale, Clinical Global Impression Scale, Swanson, Nolan and Pelham Rating Scale, version IV for attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder, Children's Depression Inventory, Spence Children's Anxiety Scale and a novel Attention Test. In addition, symptom improvement correlated with an increase of both right and left RMT and was stable at six months follow-up. Therefore, we found that 1Hz rTMS to the SMA can improve clinical symptoms in children with TS for at least six months.






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