Comprehensive Summary
Jia et al. used a retrospective cohort study to analyze 194 patients with post-stroke aphasia to determine the efficacy and safety of high-frequency versus low-frequency repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) on language recovery. Overall, low-frequency rTMS depicted inhibitory effects on cortical activity, and high-frequency rTMS was excitatory. To treat language deficits after left hemisphere stroke, the low-frequency setup was used to treat the right Broca's area to improve language recovery, and high-frequency setup was used to treat the left Broca's area to improve language processing. Language outcomes were assessed with the Western Aphasia Battery-Aphasia Quotient and Boston Naming Test at baseline, post-treatment, and two months post-treatment. In post-treatment low-frequency stimulation improved speech, comprehension, naming, and repetition. In two months post-treatment, both groups showed language improvement with the low-frequency group having higher improvement. Additionally, the high-frequency rTMS group had increased adverse effects like headaches and seizures. Low-frequency rTMS was safer and more effective than high-frequency rTMS, yielding potential for future clinical settings to better hone treatment.
Outcomes and Implications
This study improves research and treatment options for those suffering from stroke, demonstrating significant improvement with low-frequency rTMS. This research could also prompt further analysis of frequencies as treatment for different neurological conditions, similar to studies on deep brain stimulation. On the other hand, these proposed treatments would also need to be tested further to ensure safety, making sure that there are no inadvertent consequences. Using this treatment on patients in clinical settings would require further evaluation, but the implications for rehabilitation would help a diverse range of people, especially with the prevalence of stroke in the community. More randomized controlled trials would be needed to validate findings, but low-frequency rTMs could be a potential treatment for aphasia, a first of its kind.