Transcranial magnetic stimulation in complex therapy of epilepsy

Abstract

Analysis of clinical, electroencephalographic and neuroimagingdata of 19 patients with epilepsy after a course of repetitive transcranialmagnetic stimulation (rTMS) in combination with subtherapeuticdoses of anticonvulsants was performed. It wasfound that 1 Hz low-frequency temporal rTMS combined withanticonvulsants helps to reduce the number of weekly seizures by91.9% during the course of this procedure, and by 75% duringthe month after completion of the combined course. rTMScourses lead to reduction of interictal epileptiform activity anddecrease in the number of patients with pathological epilepticEEG phenomena, which may be seen not only in the stimulationperiod, but also during the following 412 weeks. rTMS has thelong lasting effects on EEG parameters: increase in the alpharhythmpower with frequency-spatial structure improvement,and decrease in the theta-rhythm and pathological beta-rhythmwith minimization of the number and size of their focuses. Theuse of low-frequency and low-intensity rTMS together with subtherapeuticdoses of anticonvulsants allows avoiding the development of side effects and ensuring high anti-seizure activity

Keywords

• epilepsy
• treatment
• repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation