title: Improved picture naming in chronic aphasia after TMS to part of right Broca's area: an open-protocol study.
abstract: Functional imaging studies with nonfluent aphasia patients have observed "over-activation" in right (R) language homologues. This may represent a maladaptive strategy; suppression may result in language improvement. We applied slow, 1 Hz repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) to an anterior portion of R Broca's homologue daily, for 10 days in four aphasia patients who were 5-11 years poststroke. Significant improvement was observed in picture naming at 2 months post-rTMS, with lasting benefit at 8 months in three patients. This preliminary, open trial suggests that rTMS may provide a novel treatment approach for aphasia by possibly modulating the distributed, bi-hemispheric language network.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, Harold Goodglass Boston University Aphasia Research Center, Boston University School of Medicine and the Veterans Affairs Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA 02130, USA. mnaeser@bu.edu
authors.forename: Margaret A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Naeser
authors.forename: Paula I
authors.initials: PI
authors.lastname: Martin
authors.forename: Marjorie
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Nicholas
authors.forename: Errol H
authors.initials: EH
authors.lastname: Baker
authors.forename: Heidi
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Seekins
authors.forename: Masahito
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Kobayashi
authors.forename: Hugo
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Theoret
authors.forename: Felipe
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Fregni
authors.forename: Jose
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Maria-Tormos
authors.forename: Jacquie
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Kurland
authors.forename: Karl W
authors.initials: KW
authors.lastname: Doron
authors.forename: Alvaro
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Pascual-Leone
mesh_terms: D001037:Aphasia / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000534:rehabilitation* / Q000628:therapy; D002908:Chronic Disease; D004599:Electric Stimulation Therapy; D005260:Female; D005625:Frontal Lobe / Q000502:physiology*; D007839:Functional Laterality / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D008280:Magnetics; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010364:Pattern Recognition, Visual; D012660:Semantics; D016896:Treatment Outcome