Rehabilitating the non-motor symptoms of Parkinson's disease using repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation / 中华物理医学与康复杂志

ABSTRACT

Objective To research the clinical rehabilitative effect of repeated transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) for the non-motor symptoms of Parkinson's disease.Methods Fifty-five PD patients were randomly divided into an rTMS treatment group (n =29) and a sham stimulation group (n =26).The treatment group received a course of 0.5 Hz rTMS treatment,while the sham stimulation group had the same treatment but with no energy output.Both groups were evaluated using a non-motor symptoms questionnaire (NMSQuest),the Hamilton depression scale (HAMD),the Pediatric Daytime Sleepiness Scale (PDSS),the mini-mental state examination (MMSE) and the scale for outcomes in PD for autonomic symptoms (SCOPA-AUT) before treatment,immediately after,and a month after treatment.Results Compared with before treatment,the average NMSQuest score of the treatment group declined significantly,though 1 month after treatment the improvement was no longer significant.After treatment and 1 month later the average NMSQuest score of the sham stimulation group increased gradually.The effect in the treatment group was therefore significantly better than in the sham stimulation group.After treatment and 1 month later the average HAMD score of the treatment group was significantly lower than before treatment while the average HAMD score of the sham stimulation group had increased gradually.The improvement in depression in the treatment group was therefore significantly better than in the sham stimulation group.After treatment,sleep disorders in the treatment group had been significantly alleviated,but one month later the improvement was no longer significant compared with before treatment.PDSS scores in the sham stimulation group declined gradually,but the improvement in sleep disorders among the treatment group was significantly better than among the sham stimulation group.Cognition improved significantly among the treatment group right after treatment,but 1 month later it had worsened while the MMSE scores of the sham stimulation group decreased gradually.The difference between the two groups was statistically significant.The average SCOPA-AUT scores of the two groups were not significantly different from each other or from the scores before treatment.Conclusion Repeated TMS can improve most non-motor symptoms of PD.The improvement in depression is the most significant.A short course of rTMS has no obvious rehabilitative effect on the autonomic function disorders of PD patients.