Crossed reduction of human motor cortex excitability by 1-Hz transcranial magnetic stimulation

Electrophysiological studies have shown that 1-Hz repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) of the primary motor area (M1) can produce a local decrease in excitability. Functional imaging data suggest that this change may be bilateral. In normal subjects, we measured motor evoked potential...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Neuroscience letters 1998-07, Vol.250 (3), p.141-144
Main Authors: Wassermann, Eric M, Wedegaertner, Felix R, Ziemann, Ulf, George, Mark S, Chen, Robert
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adult
Aged
Basal ganglia
Basal Ganglia - physiology
Biological and medical sciences
Brain - physiology
Electric Stimulation
Electrophysiology
Evoked Potentials, Motor - physiology
Female
Functional Laterality - physiology
Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology
Humans
Inhibition
Long-term depression
Male
Middle Aged
Motor control and motor pathways. Reflexes. Control centers of vegetative functions. Vestibular system and equilibration
Motor cortex
Motor Cortex - physiology
Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation
Vertebrates: nervous system and sense organs
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Summary:Electrophysiological studies have shown that 1-Hz repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) of the primary motor area (M1) can produce a local decrease in excitability. Functional imaging data suggest that this change may be bilateral. In normal subjects, we measured motor evoked potential (MEP) amplitude at a series of stimulation intensities in the contralateral M1 before and after 15 min of active or sham rTMS at just above the MEP threshold. The slope of the curve relating MEP amplitude and stimulation intensity was decreased in the unstimulated hemisphere by active but not sham rTMS. This demonstrates that rTMS can condition cortical excitability at a distance of one or more synapses and suggest that decreased excitability to TMS is a correlate of decreased blood flow and metabolism.
ISSN:0304-3940
1872-7972
DOI:10.1016/S0304-3940(98)00437-6