Role of Single Low Pulse Intensity of Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation Over the Frontal Cortex for Cognitive Function

Shahid Bashir; Fawaz Al-Hussain; Ali Hamza; Ghadah Faisal Shareefi; Turki Abualait; Woo-Kyoung Yoo

doi:10.3389/fnhum.2020.00205

Role of Single Low Pulse Intensity of Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation Over the Frontal Cortex for Cognitive Function

Front Hum Neurosci. 2020 Jul 3:14:205. doi: 10.3389/fnhum.2020.00205. eCollection 2020.

Authors

Shahid Bashir¹, Fawaz Al-Hussain², Ali Hamza³, Ghadah Faisal Shareefi¹, Turki Abualait⁴, Woo-Kyoung Yoo⁵

Affiliations

¹ Department of Neurophysiology, Neuroscience Center, King Fahad Specialist Hospital, Dammam, Saudi Arabia.
² Department of Neurology, College of Medicine, King Saud University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
³ Department of Electrical Engineering, National University of Computer and Emerging Sciences, Lahore, Pakistan.
⁴ College of Applied Medical Sciences, Imam Abdulrahman Bin Faisal University, Dammam, Saudi Arabia.
⁵ Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Division of Neuroscience Center, Hallym University Sacred Heart Hospital, Anyang, South Korea.

Abstract

Background: The principal aim of this study was to measure the effect of online single-pulse transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) over the right dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) on cognition via the Cambridge Neuropsychological Test Automated Battery (CANTAB) in healthy individuals. Methods: In a single-blind, sham-controlled study, we assessed both 50% and 60% of the resting motor threshold (RMT) over the right DLPFC in healthy right-handed (n = 42) adults using cognitive function, such as attention and memory, as a measure via CANTAB. Results: We observed an improvement in the cognitive function level during the use of online low intensities of 50% and 60% RMT active stimulation of the DLPFC compared to the sham stimulation. Conclusions: The results showed that low-intensity TMS can indeed effectively modulate cognitive function in DLPFC. Future research is, however, necessary to investigate the potential effects of low-intensity TMS on different brain areas to increase confidence in the observed results.

Keywords: cognitive functions; dorsolateral prefrontal cortex; monophasic TMS; neuromodulation; subthreshold TMS.