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High-frequency repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (HF-rTMS) on global cognitive function of elderly in mild to moderate Alzheimer’s disease: a systematic review and meta-analysis

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Abstract

Objective

High-frequency repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (HF-rTMS) is a non-invasive brain stimulation technique used to improve cognitive deficits in patients with Alzheimer’s disease (AD). This systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to evaluate the efficacy of HF-rTMS in improving global cognitive function rehabilitation in elderly patients with mild to moderate AD.

Methods

A detailed literature search of publications using ten databases (Chinese: Wanfang, VIP Periodical, SinoMed, the Chinese National Knowledge Infrastructure; English: PubMed, Embase, OVID, Web of Science, Cochrane Library, and EBSCOhost) was performed to identify English and Chinese language articles published up to December 2022. We only included randomized controlled trials (RCTs) that evaluate the effect of HF-rTMS on elderly patients with mild to moderate AD. The retrieved studies were carefully reviewed, extracted data, and assessed quality.

Results

Seventeen studies, including 1161 elderly patients with mild to moderate AD, were included in this meta-analysis. Compared to the control group, HF-rTMS could increase MMSE (mean difference [MD] = 3.64; 95%CI 1.86–5.42; P < 0.0001), MoCA (MD = 3.69; 95%CI 1.84–5.54; P < 0.0001), P300 amplitude (MD = 1.09; 95%CI 0.45–1.72; P = 0.0008), and total effective rate scores (MD = 3.64; 95% CI 2.14–6.18; P < 0.00001) while decreasing ADAS-Cog (MD =  − 3.53; 95%CI − 4.91– − 2.15; P < 0.00001) and P300 latency scores (MD =  − 38.32; 95%CI − 72.40– − 4.24; P = 0.03). Our study showed that HF-rTMS could improve the global cognitive function of elderly patients with mild to moderate AD.

Conclusion

HF-rTMS can improve global cognitive function in elderly patients with mild to moderate AD, which is an effective and safe rehabilitation treatment tool for AD patients.

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Acknowledgements

We thank Medjaden Inc for the scientific editing of this manuscript.

Funding

This study was supported by The open subject of nursing discipline in Fujian University of Traditional Chinese Medicine in 2022 (XHL2022003).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Nursing College, Fujian University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, No.1 Qiu Yang Road, Shangjie, Minhou, Fuzhou, 350122, Fujian, China

    Huoqin Xiu, Fang Liu, Yufei Hou, Xin Chen & Shuzhen Tu

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  1. Huoqin Xiu
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  2. Fang Liu
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Contributions

Huoqin Xiu, Fang Liu and Yufei Hou conceived the review. Huoqin Xiu and Yufei Hou wrote the manuscript. Yufei Hou, Xin Chen, and Fang Liu performed the data extraction. Huoqin Xiu, Fang Liu and Shuzhen Tu participated in the data analysis. The final version of the manuscript before submission has been approved by all authors.

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Correspondence to Fang Liu.

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Xiu, H., Liu, F., Hou, Y. et al. High-frequency repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (HF-rTMS) on global cognitive function of elderly in mild to moderate Alzheimer’s disease: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Neurol Sci 45, 13–25 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10072-023-07072-5

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