Magnetic Therapy & Repetitive Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (rTMS/TMS) In Stroke: A pulsed electromagnetic therapy research review

Pulsed electromagnetic field (PEMF) research shows PEMF improved cell survival after ischemic (no oxygen) shock. Studies show 90% reduced ischemic damage and subsequent disability. PEMF works so good protecting against (and recovering from stroke disability) that like heart defibrillators, this simple technology should be made available in the home for those at risk for stroke in case of an adverse event with the any component of the cardiovascular system. ARM YOURSELF, BECAUSE YOUR DOCTOR SURE ISN'T GOING TO TELL YOU ABOUT IT.

Repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS / TMS)  research on human subjects repeatedly shows statistically significantly motor and cognitive improvement in human stroke participants w/ no adverse side effects. rTMS and PEMF studies even 5-10 years post stroke show measurable improvement. Based on available research (see below links) PEMF used for stroke in concert with standard rehabilitative stroke therapy should result in significantly improved outcome over standard rehabilitative therapy alone. In unrelated studies PEMF have shown clear neuroprotective and regenerative effects. Ask yourself why you've never known about it until now.


Frequency Specific Pulsed Electromagnetic Field (PEMF) Research Bibliographies:

Several hundred pulsed electromagnetic field therapy citations contained in our research bibliographies are linked directly to PubMed a service of the U.S. National Library of Medicine and the U.S. National Institutes of Health. These studies are offered for your education only and are not intended as promotional material.

See also; Sandyk R, Anninos PA , Jacobson JI; three pioneers of electromagnetic field therapy to treat Parkinson's, Alzheimer's and epilepsy.

PEMF Background:

introduction to electromedicine

brain wave entrainment

brain wave entrainment II

Dr. Oz on PEMF therapy for pain (16 November '11 episode video)

Electromagnetism & Life; by Andrew Marino & R.O. Becker (due to file size this pdf takes up to minutes to load)


PEMF Research By Effect:

Alzheimer's and frequency specific pulsed electromagnetic fields

anti-aging and frequency specific pulsed electromagnetic field therapy research

arthritis and frequency specific pulsed electromagnetic field therapy research

athletic performance enhancement (ergogenic effect) and frequency specific pulsed electromagnetic field therapy research

bone / connective tissue regeneration and frequency specific pulsed electromagnetic field therapy research

depression and frequency specific pulsed electromagnetic field therapy research

EMF protection - electropollution research (your brain and your wireless technologies)

epilepsy and frequency specific pulsed electromagnetic field therapy research

fibromyalgia and frequency specific pulsed electromagnetic field therapy research

insomnia and frequency specific pulsed electromagnetic field therapy research

migraine headache and frequency specific pulsed electromagnetic field therapy research

multiple sclerosis and frequency specific pulsed electromagnetic field therapy research

nerve regeneration and frequency specific pulsed electromagnetic field therapy research

neuropathy and frequency specific pulsed electromagnetic field therapy research

osteoporosis and frequency specific pulsed electromagnetic field therapy research

pain and frequency specific pulsed electromagnetic field therapy research

Parkinson's disease and frequency specific pulsed electromagnetic field therapy research

sleep and radio frequency microwave telecommunications fields

SleepEasy® (new) & Sleep on Command™ pulsed magnetic sleep-machine

stroke and frequency specific pulsed electromagnetic field therapy research

thyroid and frequency specific pulsed electromagnetic field therapy research

tinnitus and frequency specific pulsed electromagnetic field therapy research

transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS / TMS) research

wound healing and frequency specific pulsed electromagnetic field therapy research


EarthPulse research:

video evidence

client feedback forms

chronic lower back pain/sleep study

magnetic fields in the news


Brain Lang. 2011 Mar;116(3):125-35. Epub 2010 Aug 3.
Modulation of N400 in chronic non-fluent aphasia using low frequency Repetitive Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (rTMS).
Barwood CH, Murdoch BE, Whelan BM, Lloyd D, Riek S, O'Sullivan JD, Coulthard A, Wong A.
Centre for Neurogenic Communication Disorders Research, School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences, University of Queensland

Med Sci Monit. 2011 Feb 25;17(3):CR132-139.
Excitatory repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation induces improvements in chronic post-stroke aphasia.
Szaflarski JP, Vannest J, Wu SW, Difrancesco MW, Banks C, Gilbert DL.
Department of Neurology, University of Cincinnati Academic Health Center, Cincinnati, OH, U.S.A.and Center for Imaging Research, University of Cincinnati Academic Health Center, Cincinnati, OH, U.S.A. and Pediatric Neuroimaging Research Consortium, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH, U.S.A.


Australia.NeuroRehabilitation. 2011 Jan 1;28(2):113-28.
The effects of low frequency Repetitive Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (rTMS) and sham condition rTMS on behavioural language in chronic non-fluent aphasia: Short term outcomes.
Barwood CH, Murdoch BE, Whelan BM, Lloyd D, Riek S, O'Sullivan J, Coulthard A, Wong A, Aitken P, Hall G.
Centre for Neurogenic Communication Disorders Research, School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences, University of Queensland, Australia.

Eur J Neurol. 2010 Sep;17(9):1203-9. Epub 2010 Apr 8.
Repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation at 1Hz and 5Hz produces sustained improvement in motor function and disability after ischaemic stroke.
Emara TH, Moustafa RR, Elnahas NM, Elganzoury AM, Abdo TA, Mohamed SA, Eletribi MA.
Department of Neurology and Psychiatry, Rheumatology and Rehabilitation, Ain Shams University, Cairo, Egypt.

Eur J Neurol. 2010 Dec 7. doi: 10.1111/j.1468-1331.2010.03284.x. [Epub ahead of print]
Improved language performance subsequent to low-frequency rTMS in patients with chronic non-fluent aphasia post-stroke.
Barwood CH, Murdoch BE, Whelan BM, Lloyd D, Riek S, O' Sullivan JD, Coulthard A, Wong A.
Centre for Neurogenic Communication Disorders Research, School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences, University of Queensland, Australia School of Human Movement Studies, University of Queensland, Australia Department of Neurology, Royal Brisbane and Women's Hospital, Australia Department of Medical Imaging, Royal Brisbane and Women's Hospital, Australia.

J Rehabil Med. 2010 Sep;42(8):758-64.
Long-term effects of rTMS on motor recovery in patients after subacute stroke.
Chang WH, Kim YH, Bang OY, Kim ST, Park YH, Lee PK.
Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Samsung Medical Center, Sungkyunkwan University School of Medicine, Seoul, Republic of Korea.

Restor Neurol Neurosci. 2010;28(4):545-59.
Short- and long-term effect of rTMS on motor function recovery after ischemic stroke.
Khedr EM, Fetoh NA.
Department of Neurology, Assiut University Hospital, Assiut, Egypt.

Eur J Nucl Med Mol Imaging. 2010 Jan 27. [Epub ahead of print]

Protective effects of repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation in a rat model of transient cerebral ischaemia: a microPET study.
Gao F, Wang S, Guo Y, Wang J, Lou M, Wu J, Ding M, Tian M, Zhang H.
Department of Nuclear Medicine, Second Affiliated Hospital of Zhejiang University School of Medicine, 88 Jiefang Road, Hangzhou, 310009, Zhejiang, China.
PURPOSE: Repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) is a noninvasive method to excite neurons in the brain. However, the underlying mechanism of its therapeutic effects in stroke remains unclear. The aim of this study was to investigate the neuroprotective effect of high-frequency rTMS (usually 1< up to 20 hz but not disclosed here) in a rat model of transient cerebral ischaemia using positron emission tomography (PET). METHODS: Sprague-Dawley rats (n=30) were anaesthetized with chloral hydrate and subjected to 90 min of intraluminal middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO) with subsequent reperfusion in three groups: control (n=10), rTMS (n=10), or sham-rTMS groups (n=10). In the rTMS group, rTMS was given 1 h after ischaemia and every 24 h for 7 days after MCAO. In all three groups, small-animal PET (microPET) imaging with (18)F-FDG was used to evaluate brain glucose metabolism. Apoptotic molecules were measured in the infarct margin using immunohistochemical staining. RESULTS: The neurological scores of the rats in the rTMS group were higher than in those of the control group over the whole 7-day observation period. The total, cortical and striatal infarct volumes were significantly less in the rTMS group than in the control group, as measured by 2,3,5-triphenyltetrazolium chloride staining. (18)F-FDG microPET images showed significantly higher standardized uptake values in the cortex and striatum in the rTMS group than in the control group in the affected hemisphere. The number of cells positive for caspase-3 was significantly lower in the rTMS group than in the control group, while the Bcl-2/Bax ratio was significantly higher in the rTMS group than in the control group. CONCLUSION: rTMS therapy increased glucose metabolism (no doubt in tandem w/enhanced  oxygen metabolism)  and inhibited apoptosis in the ischaemic hemisphere. (18)F-FDG PET could be used to monitor rTMS therapy in transient cerebral ischaemia in animal studies and in future clinical trials.

Acta Neurol Scand. 2010 Jan;121(1):30-7. Epub 2009 Aug 11.
Long-term effect of repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation on motor function recovery after acute ischemic stroke.
Khedr EM, Etraby AE, Hemeda M, Nasef AM, Razek AA.
Department of Neurology, Assiut University Hospital, Assiut, Egypt. emankhedr99@yahoo.com
OBJECTIVE: Although there is evidence for short term benefits of rTMS in stroke, longer term effects have not been reported. The aim of the study was to evaluate the effect of two different frequencies of rTMS on motor recovery and on cortical excitability up to 1 year post-treatment. METHODS: Forty-eight patients with acute ischemic stroke were randomly classified into three groups. The first two groups received real rTMS over motor cortex (3 and 10 Hz respectively) of the affected hemisphere and the third group received sham stimulation of the same site, daily for five consecutive days. Disability was assessed before, after fifth sessions, and then after 1, 2, 3 and 12 months. Cortical excitability was assessed for both hemispheres before and after the second and fifth sessions. RESULTS: A significant 'rTMS x time' interaction was obtained indicating that real and sham rTMS had different effects on rating scales. This was because real rTMS produced greater improvement than sham that was evident even at one year follow-up. These improvements were associated with changes in cortical excitability over the period of treatment. CONCLUSION: These results confirm that real rTMS over motor cortex can enhance and maintain recovery and may be a useful add on therapy in treatment of acute stroke patients.

J Neurol Neurosurg Psychiatry. 2009 Dec 3. [Epub ahead of print]

Therapeutic role of rTMS on recovery of dysphagia in patients with lateral medullary syndrome and brain stem infarction.
Khedr E, Abo-Elfetoh N.
Department of Neurology , Assiut University Hospital, Assiut, Egypt.
Background and purpose: There is some evidence for a therapeutic effect of rTMS on dysphagia in hemispheric stroke. Aim of the study: To compare the effect of real or sham rTMS applied to the motor area of both hemispheres in patients with acute Lateral medullay (LMI) or brain stem infarctions. Material and METHOD: The study included 22 patients with acute ischemic stroke who had severe bulbar manifestation. 11 patients had LMI and 11 had brain stem infarction. They were randomly allocated to receive real (n = 11) or sham (n = 11) rTMS of the esophageal motor cortex. Each patient received 300 rTMS pulses at 3 Hz and an intensity of 130% resting motor threshold to each hemisphere for five consecutive days. Clinical ratings of dysphagia and motor disability were assessed before and immediately after the last session and then again after 1 and 2 months. RESULTS: There were no significant differences in baseline clinical assessment of swallowing between real and sham groups. Real rTMS improved dysphagia compared with sham rTMS in both groups of patients,(P = 0.001 for both); the LMI group also improved the scores in the Barthel Index. All improvements were maintained over 2 months of follow-up (P = 0.001). CONCLUSION: These findings suggest that rTMS could be a useful adjuvant strategy in neurorehabilitation of dysphagia due to LMI or brain stem infarction, although further assessment is necessary in multicentre clinical trials.

Eur J Neurol. 2009 Dec;16(12):1323-30. Epub 2009 Sep 23.
Role of 1 and 3 Hz repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation on motor function recovery after acute ischaemic stroke.
Khedr EM, Abdel-Fadeil MR, Farghali A, Qaid M.
Department of Neurology, Assiut University Hospital, Assiut, Egypt. emankhedr99@yahoo.com
BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to compare the long-term effect of five daily sessions of 1 vs. 3 Hz repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) on motor recovery in acute stroke. METHODS: A total of 36 patients with acute ischaemic stroke participated in the study. The patients were randomly assigned into one of three groups; the first and second groups received real rTMS; 1 and 3 Hz and third group received sham stimulation, daily for 5 days. Motor disability was assessed before and after the last session, and then after first, second and third month. Cortical excitability was assessed before and after the second and fifth session. The outcome measure was clinical disability at 3 months post-rTMS. RESULTS: No significant differences were found in basal rating scales between the three groups. At the 3-month time point, both of the real rTMS groups had improved significantly more in different rating scales than the sham group; in addition, the 1 Hz group performed better than the 3 Hz group. Measures of cortical excitability immediately after the last session showed that the 1 Hz group had reduced excitability of the non-stroke hemisphere and increased excitability of the stroke hemisphere, whereas the 3 Hz group only showed increased excitability of the stroke hemisphere. CONCLUSION: These results confirm that five daily sessions of rTMS over motor cortex using either 1 Hz over the unaffected hemisphere or 3 Hz over the affected hemisphere can enhance recovery. At 3 months, the improvement was more pronounced in 1 Hz group.

J Neuroeng Rehabil. 2009 Mar 2;6:7.  Links
Transcranial magnetic stimulation, synaptic plasticity and network oscillations.
The basic principle of TMS is that most neuronal axons that fall within the volume of magnetic stimulation become electrically excited, trigger action potentials and release neurotransmitter into the postsynaptic neurons. What happens afterwards remains elusive, especially in the case of repeated stimulation. Here we discuss the likelihood that certain TMS protocols produce long-term changes in cortical synapses akin to long-term potentiation and long-term depression of synaptic transmission. Beyond the synaptic effects, TMS might have consequences on other neuronal processes, such as genetic and protein regulation, and circuit-level patterns, such as network oscillations. Furthermore, TMS might have non-neuronal effects such as changes in blood flow, which are still poorly understood.

Acta Neurol Scand. 2009 Mar;119(3):155-61. Epub 2008 Sep 3. Links
Treatment of post-stroke dysphagia with repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation.
Department of Neurology, Assiut University Hospital, Assiut, Egypt.

Chin Med J (Engl). 2008 Jul 20;121(14):1307-12.
Effects of repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation on adenosine triphosphate content and microtubule associated protein-2 expression after cerebral ischemia-reperfusion injury (stroke) in rat brain.
Feng HL, Yan L, Cui LY.
Department of Neurology, First Hospital of Harbin Medical University, Harbin, Heilongjiang 150001, China.
RESULTS: rTMS could significantly increase ATP content and MAP-2 expression in the left brain following ischemic insult (P < 0.01) and different rTMS parameters had different effects on the ATP level and the MAP-2 expression in the left striatum. A high-frequency rTMS played an important role in MAP-2 expression and ATP preservation.
CONCLUSIONS: This study revealed that rTMS induced significant increase of ATP content and MAP-2 expression in the injured area of the brain, suggesting that the regulation of both ATP and MAP-2 may be involved in the biological mechanism of the effect of rTMS on neural recovery. Therefore, rTMS may become a potential adjunctive therapy for ischemic cerebrovascular disease.


Stroke. 2007 Apr;38(4):1286-92. Epub 2007 Feb 22.
The right inferior frontal gyrus and poststroke aphasia: a follow-up investigation.
Winhuisen L, Thiel A, Schumacher B, Kessler J, Rudolf J, Haupt WF, Heiss WD.
Source
Department of Neurology, University of Cologne, Cologne, Germany

Expert Rev Neurother. 2007 Mar;7(3):249-58.  Links
Use of transcranial magnetic stimulation of the brain in stroke rehabilitation.
Istituto di Neurologia, Universita Cattolica, L.go A. Gemelli 8, 00168 Rome, Italy

Clin Neurophysiol. 2007 Feb;118(2):333-42. Epub 2006 Dec 12.  Links
Exploring Theta Burst Stimulation as an intervention to improve motor recovery in chronic stroke.
Institute of Neurology, University College London (UCL), UK

NeuroRx. 2006 Oct;3(4):474-81.  Links
Noninvasive brain stimulation in stroke rehabilitation.
Human Cortical Physiology Section and Stroke Neurorehabilitation Clinic, National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland 20892, USA.

Stroke. 2006 Jun;37(6):1471-6. Epub 2006 May 4.
Repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation-induced corticomotor excitability and associated motor skill acquisition in chronic stroke.

Kim YH, You SH, Ko MH, Park JW, Lee KH, Jang SH, Yoo WK, Hallett M.

RESULTS: rTMS resulted in significantly larger increase in the MEP amplitude than the sham rTMS (P<0.01), and the change was positively associated with an enhanced motor performance accuracy.

Stroke. 2006 Jun 29; [Epub ahead of print]
A Sham-Controlled Trial of a 5-Day Course of Repetitive Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation of the Unaffected Hemisphere in Stroke Patients.

Fregni F, Boggio PS, Valle AC, Rocha RR, Duarte J, Ferreira MJ, Wagner T, Fecteau S, Rigonatti SP, Riberto M, Freedman SD, Pascual-Leone A. From the Harvard Center for Non-Invasive Brain Stimulation, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Mass.

RESULTS: Active rTMS resulted in a significant improvement of the motor function performance in the affected hand that lasted for 2 weeks. These effects were not observed in the sham rTMS group (affected and unaffected hand). Furthermore, this increased dose of rTMS is not associated with cognitive adverse effects and/or epileptogenic activity

Neurology. 2005 Aug 9;65(3):466-8.
Therapeutic trial of repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation after acute ischemic stroke.

Khedr EM, Ahmed MA, Fathy N, Rothwell JC. Department of Neurology, Assiut University Hospital, Assiut, Egypt.

Disability scales at the end of the last rTMS session, and 10 days later showed that real rTMS improved patients' scores more than sham.

Improving disability in stroke with RTMS.
Lancet Neurol. 2005 Aug;4(8):454-5.
No abstract available (huh?...i wonder what this showed they don't want you to read)
PMID: 16033688 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]

Semin Speech Lang. 2004 May;25(2):181-91.
Transcranial magnetic stimulation as a complementary treatment for aphasia.

Following 10 rTMS treatments, significant improvement in naming pictures was observed. This form of rTMS may provide a novel, complementary treatment for aphasia.

Clin Neurophysiol. 2004 May;115(5):1044-51.
Induction of long-term plasticity in human swallowing motor cortex following repetitive cortical stimulation.

SIGNIFICANCE: This might be a useful approach in the motor rehabilitation of dysphagic stroke patients who have damage to sensory projections to the swallowing cortex.

Biol Psychiatry. 2004 Feb 15;55(4):398-405.
Repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation as treatment of poststroke depression: a preliminary study.

BACKGROUND: Depression has a significant impact on poststroke recovery and mortality. There are a proportion of patients with poststroke depression (PSD) who do not respond to antidepressants. Repetitive Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (rTMS) might be a safe and effective alternative in these refractory cases.

CONCLUSIONS: Taken together, these preliminary findings suggest that rTMS may be an effective and safe treatment alternative for patients with refractory depression and stroke.


Bioelectromagnetics. 1994;15(3):205-16.     Related Articles, Links
Protection against focal cerebral ischemia following exposure to a pulsed electromagnetic field.
Grant G, Cadossi R, Steinberg G.
Department of Neurosurgery, Stanford University, California 94305.
There is evidence that electromagnetic stimulation may accelerate the healing of tissue damage following ischemia. We undertook this study to investigate the effects of low frequency pulsed electromagnetic field (PEMF) exposure on cerebral injury in a rabbit model of transient focal ischemia (2 h occlusion followed by 4 h of reperfusion). PEMF exposure (280 V, 75 Hz, IGEA Stimulator) was initiated 10 min after the onset of ischemia and continued throughout reperfusion (six exposed, six controls). Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and histology were used to measure the degree of ischemic injury. Exposure to pulsed electromagnetic field attenuated cortical ischemia edema on MRI at the most anterior coronal level by 65% (P < 0.001). On histologic examination, PEMF exposure reduced ischemic neuronal damage in this same cortical area by 69% (P < 0.01) and by 43% (P < 0.05) in the striatum. Preliminary data suggest that exposure to a PEMF of short duration may have implications for the treatment of acute stroke.

J Cell Biochem. 1993 Apr;51(4):387-93.     Related Articles, Links

Beneficial effects of electromagnetic fields.
Bassett CA.
Bioelectric Research Center, Columbia University, Riverdale, New York 10463.
Selective control of cell function by applying specifically configured, weak, time-varying magnetic fields has added a new, exciting dimension to biology and medicine. Field parameters for therapeutic, pulsed electromagnetic field (PEMFs) were designed to induce voltages similar to those produced, normally, during dynamic mechanical deformation of connective tissues. As a result, a wide variety of challenging musculoskeletal disorders have been treated successfully over the past two decades. More than a quarter million patients with chronically ununited fractures have benefitted, worldwide, from this surgically non-invasive method, without risk, discomfort, or the high costs of operative repair. Many of the athermal bioresponses, at the cellular and subcellular levels, have been identified and found appropriate to correct or modify the pathologic processes for which PEMFs have been used. Not only is efficacy supported by these basic studies but by a number of double-blind trials. As understanding of mechanisms expands, specific requirements for field energetics are being defined and the range of treatable ills broadened. These include nerve regeneration, wound healing, graft behavior, diabetes, and myocardial and cerebral ischemia (heart attack and stroke), among other conditions. Preliminary data even suggest possible benefits in controlling malignancy.

Basset pre-dates R.O. Becker's use of electricity to heal bone.