Institute of Neurology, Università Cattolica, Largo A. Gemelli 8, Rome, Italy.
Brain Stimul. 2010 Jan;3(1):22-7. doi: 10.1016/j.brs.2009.04.004. Epub 2009 May 22.
Motor cortex stimulation has been proposed for treatment of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and preliminary studies have reported a slight reduction of disease progression using both invasive and noninvasive repetitive stimulation of the motor cortex.
The aim of this proof of principle study was to investigate the effects of motor cortex stimulation performed for a prolonged period (about 2 years) on ALS progression.
Two patients were included in the study; the first patient was treated with monthly cycles of repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) and the second one was treated with chronic epidural motor cortex stimulation. The rate of progression of the disease before and during treatment was compared.
The treatments were well tolerated by the patients. Both patients deteriorated during treatment; however, the patient treated with rTMS showed a slight reduction in deterioration rate.
Although we cannot be sure whether the effects observed in the patient treated with rTMS can be attributed to this form of stimulation, our study set the groundwork for possible future studies investigating the effects of rTMS, for a prolonged period, on a larger group of ALS patients.
运动皮层刺激已被提议用于治疗肌萎缩侧索硬化症（ALS），初步研究报告称，使用侵入性和非侵入性重复运动皮层刺激可轻微减缓疾病进展。
本原理验证研究的目的是研究长时间（约 2 年）进行运动皮层刺激对 ALS 进展的影响。
本研究纳入了 2 名患者；第一例患者接受每月重复经颅磁刺激（rTMS）治疗，第二例患者接受慢性硬膜外运动皮层刺激治疗。比较治疗前后疾病进展的速度。
患者对治疗均耐受良好。两名患者在治疗过程中均恶化，但接受 rTMS 治疗的患者恶化速度略有减缓。
尽管我们不能确定接受 rTMS 治疗的患者观察到的效果是否归因于这种刺激形式，但我们的研究为未来可能的研究奠定了基础，这些研究将针对更大的 ALS 患者群体，探究 rTMS 长期治疗的效果。
