Contribution of transcranial magnetic stimulation to the understanding of mechanisms of functional recovery after stroke

摘要

Motor disability continues to be a major cause of morbidity after stroke. The neural underpinnings of disability and of functional recovery are still unclear. Here, we review recent evidence obtained using transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) that provides new insight into these mechanisms. We briefly discuss the use of TMS in the diagnosis, prognosis, and therapy of post-stroke motor disability. Differently from previous reviews, particular emphasis is placed in the discussion of the use of TMS as a tool to explore in detailed mechanisms of neuroplasticity during spontaneous and treatment-induced recovery of motor function. TMS can be used to acquire the understanding of these mechanisms required for the development of more rational and clinically useful interventions in stroke neurorehabilitation.