Mechanistic study of transcranial magnetic stimulation intervention for poststroke attention deficit: a randomised...

Treating attention disorders is one of the hottest studies in the field of rehabilitation medicine. Stroke leads to the destruction of the functional network of the cerebral cortex and impairs the cognitive function of patients. Improvement of attention plays a pivotal role in the rehabilitation of patients who have had a stroke. Repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation has achieved relatively positive efficacy in rehabilitation applications for patients who have had a stroke; however, its optimal parameters and mechanism of action regarding poststroke attention deficits are still elusive. Therefore, this will be an in-depth study exploring the mechanisms of high-frequency transcranial magnetic stimulation on cerebral functional connectivity in patients with poststroke attentional dysfunction.

This single-centre randomised controlled trial will involve 120 patients who have had a stroke. They will be randomly allocated to either a high-frequency transcranial magnetic stimulation group or a control group (sham stimulation group). The intervention will take place 5 days a week for 2 weeks. The primary outcome will be a comparison between and within the two groups from baseline to 2 weeks before and after the intervention, and will be based on quantitative electroencephalography to explore the connectivity of brain networks and to assess the efficacy of high-frequency transcranial magnetic stimulation on attentional functioning after stroke. Functional near-infrared spectroscopy imaging, a range of neuropsychological scales, activities of daily living, motor function scores and biological indicators will be used as secondary outcome indicators.

This study has been approved by the Ethics Committee of the First Hospital of Shanxi Medical University (NO. KYLL-2023-264 and NO.KYXZ-2024-005). All participants will sign the informed consent form. Findings will be published in peer-reviewed journals and presented at conferences.

ChiCTR2400082383.