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Updated: Jul 13, 2025
Utilizing Repetitive Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation to Improve Language Function in Stroke Patients with Chronic Non-fluent Aphasia
Published on: July 2, 2013
Non-invasive brain stimulation in the treatment of post-stroke aphasia: a scoping review
Ellen E R Williams1,2, Sabrina Sghirripa1,2, Nigel C Rogasch1,2,3
1School of Biomedicine, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, The University of Adelaide, Adelaide, Australia.
Purpose:
Aphasia is an acquired language impairment that commonly results from stroke. Non-invasive brain stimulation (NIBS) might accelerate aphasia recovery trajectories and has seen mounting popularity in recent aphasia rehabilitation research. The present review aimed to: (1) summarise all existing literature on NIBS as a post-stroke aphasia treatment; and (2) provide recommendations for future NIBS-aphasia research.
Materials And Methods:
Databases for published and grey literature were searched using scoping review methodology. 278 journal articles, conference abstracts/posters, and books, and 38 items of grey literature, were included for analysis.
Results:
Quantitative analysis revealed that ipsilesional anodal transcranial direct current stimulation and contralesional 1-Hz repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation were the most widely used forms of NIBS, while qualitative analysis identified four key themes including: the roles of the hemispheres in aphasia recovery and their relationship with NIBS; heterogeneity of individuals but homogeneity of subpopulations; individualisation of stimulation parameters; and much remains under-explored in the NIBS-aphasia literature.
Conclusions:
Taken together, these results highlighted systemic challenges across the field such as small sample sizes, inter-individual variability, lack of protocol optimisation/standardisation, and inadequate focus on aphasiology. Four key recommendations are outlined herein to guide future research and refine NIBS methods for post-stroke aphasia treatment.
