TY - JOUR
T1 - Repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation induced slow wave activity modification
T2 - A possible role in disorder of consciousness differential diagnosis?
AU - Pisani, Laura Rosa
AU - Naro, Antonino
AU - Leo, Antonino
AU - Aricò, Irene
AU - Pisani, Francesco
AU - Silvestri, Rosalia
AU - Bramanti, Placido
AU - Calabrò, Rocco Salvatore
PY - 2015/12/15
Y1 - 2015/12/15
N2 - Slow wave activity (SWA) generation depends on cortico-thalamo-cortical loops that are disrupted in patients with chronic Disorders of Consciousness (DOC), including the Unresponsive Wakefulness Syndrome (UWS) and the Minimally Conscious State (MCS). We hypothesized that the modulation of SWA by means of a repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) could reveal residual patterns of connectivity, thus supporting the DOC clinical differential diagnosis. We enrolled 10 DOC individuals who underwent a 24. hh polysomnography followed by a real or sham 5. Hz-rTMS over left primary motor area, and a second polysomnographic recording. A preserved sleep-wake cycle, a standard temporal progression of sleep stages, and a SWA perturbation were found in all of the MCS patients and in none of the UWS individuals, only following the real-rTMS. In conclusion, our combined approach may improve the differential diagnosis between MCS patients, who show a partial preservation of cortical plasticity, and UWS individuals, who lack such properties.
AB - Slow wave activity (SWA) generation depends on cortico-thalamo-cortical loops that are disrupted in patients with chronic Disorders of Consciousness (DOC), including the Unresponsive Wakefulness Syndrome (UWS) and the Minimally Conscious State (MCS). We hypothesized that the modulation of SWA by means of a repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) could reveal residual patterns of connectivity, thus supporting the DOC clinical differential diagnosis. We enrolled 10 DOC individuals who underwent a 24. hh polysomnography followed by a real or sham 5. Hz-rTMS over left primary motor area, and a second polysomnographic recording. A preserved sleep-wake cycle, a standard temporal progression of sleep stages, and a SWA perturbation were found in all of the MCS patients and in none of the UWS individuals, only following the real-rTMS. In conclusion, our combined approach may improve the differential diagnosis between MCS patients, who show a partial preservation of cortical plasticity, and UWS individuals, who lack such properties.
KW - Disorders of consciousness
KW - MCS
KW - Polysomnography
KW - Slow wave activity
KW - Transcranial magnetic stimulation
KW - UWS
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=84944872288&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=84944872288&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/j.concog.2015.09.012
DO - 10.1016/j.concog.2015.09.012
M3 - Article
C2 - 26496476
AN - SCOPUS:84944872288
SN - 1053-8100
VL - 38
SP - 1
EP - 8
JO - Consciousness and Cognition
JF - Consciousness and Cognition
ER -