Effects of Repetitive Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation in the Rehabilitation of Communication and Deglutition Disorders: Systematic Review of Randomized Controlled Trials

Objective: To systematically review randomized controlled trials that evaluate the effects of repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) on rehabilitation aspects related to communication and swallowing functions. Methods: A search was conducted on PubMed, Clinical Trials, Cochrane Library, and ASHA electronic databases. Studies were judged according to the eligibility criteria and analyzed by 2 independent and blinded researchers. Results: We analyzed 9 studies: 4 about aphasia, 3 about dysphagia, 1 about dysarthria in Parkinson’s disease and 1 about linguistic deficits in Alzheimer’s disease. All aphasia studies used low-frequency rTMS to stimulate Broca’s homologous area. High-frequency rTMS was applied over the pharyngoesophageal cortex from the left and/or right hemisphere in the dysphagia studies and over the left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex in the Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s studies. Two aphasia and all dysphagia studies showed a significant improvement of the disorder, Published online: November 19, 2015 Camila Dalbosco Gadenz Department of Speech-Language Pathology, UFCSPA R. Sarmento Leite 245, Centro Porto Alegre, RS 90050-170 (Brazil) E-Mail camiladalbosco @ live.com © 2015 S. Karger AG, Basel 1021–7762/15/0672–0097$39.50/0