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Author Spotlight: Repetitive Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation Combined with Movement Observation in Cerebral Palsy
Published on: August 9, 2024
Transcranial magnetic stimulation facilitates neurorehabilitation after pediatric traumatic brain injury
Hongyang Lu1,2,3, Tali Kobilo1,2, Courtney Robertson4
1F. M. Kirby Research Center for Functional Brain Imaging, Kennedy Krieger Institute, Baltimore, MD, USA.
Insights
Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) therapy improved neuronal activity and neuroplasticity in a pediatric traumatic brain injury (TBI) model. This non-invasive approach shows promise for rehabilitating children with TBI.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Pediatric Traumatic Brain Injury Research
- Neurorehabilitation
Background:
- Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is a primary cause of childhood death and disability, leading to lifelong emotional, cognitive, and neurological deficits.
- Pediatric TBI results in abnormal neuronal hypoactivity in the non-injured primary somatosensory cortex (S1).
- Reshaping aberrant post-injury neuronal activity is a potential strategy for enhancing rehabilitation outcomes.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the efficacy of high-frequency, non-invasive transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) in a pediatric controlled cortical impact (CCI) animal model of TBI.
- To determine if TMS can restore neuronal activity and improve long-term neurophysiological and behavioral outcomes following pediatric TBI.
Main Methods:
- Utilized the controlled cortical impact (CCI) animal model of pediatric TBI (postnatal day 16-17).
- Administered TMS twice weekly for four weeks to TBI rats.
- Assessed changes in evoked-fMRI cortical responses, evoked synaptic activity, evoked neuronal firing, and neuroplasticity markers in the non-injured S1.
Main Results:
- TMS therapy significantly increased evoked-fMRI cortical responses (189%), evoked synaptic activity (46%), and evoked neuronal firing (200%) in TBI rats compared to controls.
- TMS treatment led to increased expression of cellular markers of neuroplasticity in the non-injured S1.
- Rats receiving TMS therapy exhibited reduced hyperactivity in behavioral tests.
Conclusions:
- Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) is a promising intervention for reversing adverse neuronal mechanisms following pediatric TBI.
- TMS therapy effectively restored neuronal activity and improved functional outcomes in a preclinical model of pediatric TBI.
- The findings support the potential translation of TMS for human clinical studies in TBI rehabilitation.
Abstract:
Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is the leading cause of death and disability among children in the United States. Affected children will often suffer from emotional, cognitive and neurological impairments throughout life. In the controlled cortical impact (CCI) animal model of pediatric TBI (postnatal day 16-17) it was demonstrated that injury results in abnormal neuronal hypoactivity in the non-injured primary somatosensory cortex (S1). It materializes that reshaping the abnormal post-injury neuronal activity may provide a suitable strategy to augment rehabilitation. We tested whether high-frequency, non-invasive transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) delivered twice a week over a four-week period can rescue the neuronal activity and improve the long-term functional neurophysiological and behavioral outcome in the pediatric CCI model. The results show that TBI rats subjected to TMS therapy showed significant increases in the evoked-fMRI cortical responses (189%), evoked synaptic activity (46%), evoked neuronal firing (200%) and increases expression of cellular markers of neuroplasticity in the non-injured S1 compared to TBI rats that did not receive therapy. Notably, these rats showed less hyperactivity in behavioral tests. These results implicate TMS as a promising approach for reversing the adverse neuronal mechanisms activated post-TBI. Importantly, this intervention could readily be translated to human studies.
