Objective: Neurological evidence for the combinational intervention coupling rTMS with motor training for stroke rehabilitation remains limited. This study aimed to investigate the effects of rTMS combined with bilateral arm training (BAT) on the brain functional reorganization in patients with chronic stroke via functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS).
Methods: Fifteen stroke patients and fifteen age-matched healthy participants were enrolled and underwent single BAT session (s-BAT) and BAT immediately after 5-Hz rTMS over the ipsilesional M1 (rTMS-BAT), measured cerebral haemodynamics by fNIRS. Functional connectivity (FC), the clustering coefficient (C), and local efficiency (E) were applied to evaluate the functional response to the training paradigms.
Results: The differences in FC responses to the two training paradigms were more pronounced in stroke patients than in healthy controls. In the resting state, stroke patients exhibited significantly lower FC than controls in both hemispheres. rTMS-BAT induced no significant difference in FC between groups. Compared to the resting state, rTMS-BAT induced significant decreases in C and E of the contralesional M1 and significant increases in E of the ipsilesional M1 in stroke patients. Additionally, these above two network metrics of the ipsilesional motor area were significantly positively correlated with the motor function of stroke patients.
Conclusions: These results suggest that the rTMS-BAT paradigm had additional effects on task-dependent brain functional reorganization. The engagement of the ipsilesional motor area in the functional network was associated with the motor impairment severity of stroke patients. fNIRS-based assessments may provide information about the neural mechanisms underlying combination interventions for stroke rehabilitation.
Download full-text PDF |
Source |
---|---|
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.brainres.2023.148357 | DOI Listing |
Heart Rhythm O2
December 2024
Department of Electrophysiology, North Mississippi Medical Center, Tupelo, Mississippi.
Background: Historically, percutaneous transcatheter left atrial appendage closure (LAAC) has been performed under general anesthesia (GA) with transesophageal echocardiographic images obtained by a noninvasive cardiologist and usually requires an overnight hospital stay. Alternatively, we present our single-center experience performing LAACs under deep sedation (DS), employing an echocardiographic technician instead of a noninvasive cardiologist, and expediting same-day discharge. Mid- to long-term outcomes were also evaluated with follow-up imaging at a 45-day visit.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFHeart Rhythm O2
December 2024
Division of Cardiovascular Medicine, Department of Medicine, Jichi Medical University School of Medicine, Shimotsuke, Japan.
Background: It remains unclear whether the newly adopted high-power, short-duration (HP-SD) setting in ablation for atrial fibrillation (AF) impacts periprocedural thrombotic markers or silent stroke (SS) onset.
Objective: The aim of the present study was to investigate the clinical impact of HP-SD setting ablation on changes in periprocedural thrombotic markers and the onset of SS.
Methods: We enrolled 101 AF patients: the HP-SD group (n = 67) using 50 W and the conventional ablation group (n = 34) using 30 to 40 W.
Heart Rhythm O2
December 2024
Cardiology Department, Health Sciences North Research Institute, Northern Ontario School of Medicine University, Sudbury, Ontario, Canada.
Background: There is consensus on the safety of standard dose direct oral anticoagulants (DOACs) for stroke prevention in patients undergoing cardioversion of atrial fibrillation (AF), but outcomes of reduced dose DOACs in this setting remain unclear.
Objective: This systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to compare the rate of cardioversion-associated thromboembolic events between patients taking reduced dose DOACs and those receiving standard dose anticoagulation.
Methods: A systematic search was conducted for studies published between January 1, 2009, and February 16, 2024 in PubMed, Embase, and Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials.
Am J Ophthalmol Case Rep
March 2025
Department of Ophthalmology, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, 645 N Michigan Ave, Suite 440, Chicago, IL, 60611, USA.
Purpose: To report a case of transient diplopia and upgaze paresis in the setting of acute dorsal midbrain infarcts from a cervical vertebral artery dissection in an otherwise healthy man.
Observations: A 33-year old man presented to the ophthalmology urgent clinic with a 1 h history of blurred and double vision, asthenopia, and a mild focal left posterior headache. Ocular motility examination revealed a profound upgaze palsy and convergence-retraction horizontal jerk nystagmus in attempted upgaze that gradually improved over the course of 1 h.
Neurohospitalist
January 2025
Instructor in Neurology, Harvard Medical School and Attending Physician, Stroke Division, Brigham & Women's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA.
Subacute-to-chronic gait instability has a broad differential diagnosis. The neurological exam can help elucidate the localization and suggest an underlying etiology of the symptomatology, which can lead to a more focused diagnostic approach. Two patients are described - 1 with a month of worsening difficulty with ambulation that evolved to bilateral hand discoordination and another with 18 months of progressive difficulty with ambulation that also then progressed to involve her bilateral hands.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFEnter search terms and have AI summaries delivered each week - change queries or unsubscribe any time!