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Repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) combined with cognitive training is a safe and effective modality for the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease: clinical experience

  • Neurology and Preclinical Neurological Studies - Original Article
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Abstract

Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is the most common type of dementia among the elderly. Common treatments available and non-pharmacological interventions have their limitations, and new therapeutic approaches are critically needed. Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) is a non-invasive technique that generates an electric current-inducing modulation in cortical excitability. The previous clinical trials showed that combinations of rTMS and cognitive training (rTMS-COG), as provided by the NeuroAD medical device system, offer a novel, safe, and effective method improving mild-to-moderate AD patients. In this article, we present our experience with rTMS-COG treatment, in clinical settings, of 30 mild-to-moderate AD patients that received rTMS-COG commercial treatments in two clinics for 1-h daily sessions, 5 days per week, for 6 weeks (30 sessions). Five patients returned for a second treatment. ADAS-Cog and MMSE scores were measured pre- and post-treatments. The main analyses were conducted on patients who received 1 treatment (n = 30). Data received from the five returning patients were analyzed separately. The effect of rTMS-COG treatment was statistically significant regarding both ADAS-Cog (−2.4 point improvement, PV <0.001) and MMSE (+1.7 points improvement, PV <0.001) scores. About 80 % of patients gained some cognitive improvement following NeuroAD treatment, with more than 60 % improving by more than two points, for a minimum of 9 months. The Neuronix NeuroAD System was shown to be a safe and effective non-invasive modality for cognitive improvement of Alzheimer patients, with measurable outcomes lasting, in some of them, for up to 1 year, following completion of the 6-week daily intervention course (a carryover effect).

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Neurology, Assaf Harofeh Medical Center, 70300, Zerifin, Israel

    Jose Martin Rabey & Evgenia Dobronevsky

  2. Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel-Aviv University, Tel-Aviv, Israel

    Jose Martin Rabey & Evgenia Dobronevsky

Authors
  1. Jose Martin Rabey
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  2. Evgenia Dobronevsky
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Jose Martin Rabey.

Ethics declarations

Study funding

Neuronix Ltd, Yokneam, Israel financially supported this study. The study sponsors supported the study by providing funds. The design, the collection, analysis, and interpretation of the data, the writing of the report, and the decision to submit the paper were the entire responsibility of the corresponding author and the co-author. The corresponding author had full access to all the data in the study and had final responsibility for the decision to submit for publication.

Conflict of interest

Prof. Rabey (the corresponding author) and Evgenia Dobronevsky are both consultants for Neuronix Ltd.

Ethical approval

All procedures performed in this study involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional research committee and with the 1964 Helsinki declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards. This study received the approval of the Assaf Harofeh Medical Center Ethical Committee.

Informed consent

Informed consent was obtained from all patients.

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Rabey, J.M., Dobronevsky, E. Repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) combined with cognitive training is a safe and effective modality for the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease: clinical experience. J Neural Transm 123, 1449–1455 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00702-016-1606-6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00702-016-1606-6

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