Analgesic effect of repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) in patients with chronic low back pain

Abstract

The objective of the present study was to assess the benefits of 1-week repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) in patients with chronic low back pain (LBP). The visual analogue scale (VAS), Short Form McGill pain questionnaire (SF-MPQ), and Short Form 36 Health Survey were used to evaluate the effect of this treatment. Eighty-two patients diagnosed with LBP were divided randomly into three groups: rTMS-treated group, sham group, and physical therapy-treated group. We observed a significant reduction in VAS and SF-MPQ scores in the rTMS-treated group, but not in the sham group. Moreover, patients who received rTMS had a lower mean pain score than patients treated with physical therapy. Our study suggests that rTMS produces safe, significant, and long-term relief in patients with LBP without evident side effects. This study shows for the first time that long-term repeated sessions of rTMS decrease pain perception of LBP. Bioelectromagnetics. 37:527-535, 2016. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Effect of Repetitive Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation on Pain Management: A Systematic Narrative Review

“…Chronic LBP may provoke extreme suffering and deteriorate patient QoL. Abnormal postural control of the trunk muscles may contribute to this condition, and the M1 is assumed to have a critical role in postural control modulation (96,126).…”

“…Our search located three studies, including one RCT (96) and two case studies (95,97) that focused on the use of rTMS to treat LBP. In 2016, Ambriz-Tututi et al (96) conducted an RCT to investigate the effectiveness of rTMS in patients with chronic LBP.…”

“…Our search located three studies, including one RCT (96) and two case studies (95,97) that focused on the use of rTMS to treat LBP. In 2016, Ambriz-Tututi et al (96) conducted an RCT to investigate the effectiveness of rTMS in patients with chronic LBP. Forty-one patients who received 20-Hz rTMS stimulation over the M1 experienced nearly an 80% reduction in pain from baseline by the 3rd week of treatment, which was significantly lower than that in patients who received sham rTMS (12 patients) or physical therapy (26 patients).…”

Strategies for replacing non-invasive brain stimulation sessions: recommendations for designing neurostimulation clinical trials

“…Ambriz-Tutut et al (2016) removed a subject due to "poor compliance", however they do not explicitly describe their definition of adherence [30]. Malavera et al (2016) excluded participants that missed one or more day(s) of stimulation [31].…”

Repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation: a potential therapeutic modality for chronic low back pain

“…In addition, there are currently very few published studies to evaluate the efficacy of rTMS in patients with CLBP. A recently published study by Ambriz-Tututi et al demonstrates that 1-week of rTMS therapy produces long-term pain relief in patients with CLBP, without any side effects [9]. Moreover, the results of a case study confirmed the clinical efficacy of rTMS in treating chronic pain-associated depression and insomnia in two patients with CLBP [10].…”