Transcranial magnetic stimulation in schizophrenia: the contribution of neuroimaging

• Published in: Current topics in medicinal chemistry Vol. 12; no. 21; p. 2452
• Main Authors: Du, Zhong-de, Wang, R, Prakash, Ravi, Chaudhury, S, Dayananda, G
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United Arab Emirates 01-11-2012
• Subjects: Electroencephalography; Humans; Magnetic Resonance Imaging; Neuroimaging - methods; Positron-Emission Tomography; Schizophrenia - physiopathology; Schizophrenia - therapy; Tomography, Emission-Computed - methods; Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation - methods
• ISSN: 1873-4294
• DOI: 10.2174/156802612805289908

At the most basic level, the Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation(TMS) is a neuro-scientific tool that exerts its action by influencing the neo-cortical functions. However, in-spite of so many well-evidenced roles of TMS in neuropsychiatric conditions, its exact mechanism of action remains to be known. More intriguing are its therapeutic effects in Schizophrenia at the Cerebral-level. In this review, we adopt a neuro-imaging approach for this exploration. We review the present literature for the studies in Schizophrenia which have used a combination of rTMS with 1) Electroenchephalogram (EEG) 2)The functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI) and the 3) Positron Emission Tomography (PET)/ Single-Photon Emission Computed Tomography. The TMS-EEG combination provides direct effects of TMS on the electro- magnetic field (EMF) of brain. The TMS-fMRI/PET/SPECT combinations are very effective in exploring the functional connectivity in brains of Schizophrenia patients as well as in performing rTMS guided neuro-navigation. Our review suggests that TMS combined with other neuroimaging modalities are needed for a better clarification of its neural actions.