rTMS and Conventional Physical Therapy After Stroke

Efficacy of Coupling Repetitive Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation and Conventional Physical Therapy to Reduce Upper Limb Spasticity in Stroke Patients

Given previous evidence that non invasive brain stimulation enhances the effects of conventional therapies, this randomized sham-controlled trial with 4-weeks follow-up aimed to determine if the repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS)combined with conventional physical therapy (VRT) would be superior to physical therapy in improving upper limb function and quality of life with chronic stroke individuals.

Inclusion Criteria:

• stroke onset ≥ 6 months;
• muscle tone at the wrist with a modified Ashworth scale (MAS) score between 1+ and 3;
• minimum age of 30 years old and maximum age of 75 years;
• absence of cognitive impairment, as determined by the cut-off scores on the Mini-mental state exam

Exclusion Criteria:

• history of seizure or cerebral aneurism;
• antispasticity drugs within 6 months before enrollment;
• previous surgery involving metallic implants;
• unstable vital signs;
• other neurological diseases
• aphasia