Imagine wielding a device that whispers to your brain through magnetic waves—no needles, no scars, just invisible energy reshaping neural pathways. That’s transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS), a sci-fi-worthy tech dividing into single pulses, double taps, and the repetitive rTMS, which leaves brain changes lingering like an echo. Picture hospitals using hulking, precision machines to battle depression, autism, and schizophrenia, while sleek home versions sit on nightstands, promising to ease migraines or boost focus. But do these magnetic marvels differ more than just size? Dive into how frequency flips—high for activation, low for calm—make rTMS a dual-edged neural tool, and why your living room might soon host the tool.
1.What is TMS and rTMS?
TMS is divided into three stimulation modes: single-pulse TMS (sTMS), double-pulse TMS (pTMS), and repetitive TMS (rTMS). This technology is a kind of magnetic stimulation technology that uses pulsed magnetic fields to act on the central nervous system (mainly the brain), that is, by giving magnetic stimulation to specific parts of the human skull, changing the membrane potential of cortical nerve cells, so that it can produce induced currents, affecting metabolism and nerve electrical activities in the brain, thereby causing a series of physiological and biochemical reactions. A neuromodulatory technology that understands, regulates, and intervenes in brain function. Repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) is known as repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) given at a specific site and produces biochemical and functional changes in the local and functionally relevant distal sites of the stimulation, and the biological effects can persist for some time after the stimulation has stopped. Because of its painless and non-traumatic physical properties, it has always been a dream of human beings to virtually destroy the brain and explore brain function and higher cognitive functions. Together with positron emission tomography (PET), functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), and magnetoencephalography (MEG), it is known as the "four brain science and technology of the 21st century".
2. What Does Transcranial Magnetic Therapy Do?
The transcranial magnetic stimulator is used for human central nervous system stimulation and peripheral nerve stimulation, and can also be used for neuroelectrophysiological examination, neurological function assessment in rehabilitation department, motor function evaluation and treatment research in psychiatry and neurology.
Transcranial magnetic therapy device electrotherapy part is used to improve blood circulation in the brain; It is suitable for the treatment and adjuvant treatment of ischemic cerebrovascular diseases, brain injury diseases, pediatric cerebral palsy and limb motor dysfunction caused by the above diseases; Magnetotherapy is suitable for the adjuvant treatment of ischemic cerebrovascular diseases, brain fatigue symptoms, brain injury diseases, and the adjuvant treatment of limb dysfunction in patients recovering from stroke.
3. Principle of Treatment: Home Version vs. Medical Transcranial Magnetic
Whether it is a home version or a medical type, as long as it is a transcranial magnetic stimulator, its treatment principle is unified: it outputs specific energy of negative polarity repetitive alternating electromagnetic, directly penetrates the skull to reach deeper tissues in the brain, and acts on brain cells and central nervous system, so that the cell charge increases, the oxygen-carrying capacity is enhanced, the metabolic environment of brain cells is improved, the metabolic enzyme activity is increased, the metabolism of damaged brain cells is accelerated, and the repairability of damaged cells is increased. It interferes with and inhibits the occurrence and propagation of abnormal EEG and encephalomagnetism, enhances the ability of EEG activity, and promotes the recovery of brain function, so as to achieve the treatment and improvement of some brain diseases.
4. Difference in Disease Treatment Scope: Medical vs. Home Transcranial Magnetic
The medical transcranial magnetic stimulator is developed for many brain diseases, such as: Tourette's syndrome, ADHD, autism, depression, mood disorders, schizophrenia, cerebral palsy and other related psychiatric diseases. The scope of use is relatively wide, and the treatment of diseases is more complex, so its use cost and treatment cost are relatively high, so the cost of treatment for patients in the process of use will be relatively high. For example, there are special instruments for the treatment of Tourette's syndrome, ADHD, autism, depression, and cerebral palsy, all of which are aimed at a certain disease, according to the characteristics of the disease, specially developed, for the corresponding disease has a stronger pertinence, and also saves costs.
The home version is mainly aimed at the general family, so the simple and exquisite appearance adopted in the design gives users visual enjoyment, and the simple and minimalist operation page allows users to grasp the operation steps more accurately. Generally, the operation video sent according to the manual or the instructor is completely free to deal with and economical. The hospital type must be operated by professional operators before it can be used, so the treatment must go to the hospital, otherwise it cannot be used at all.
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5. Conclusion
In summary, rTMS utilizes repetitive magnetic pulses to modulate brain function bidirectionally. rTMS has demonstrated significant value in clinical neuropsychiatry, offering a non-invasive alternative for refractory disorders.
References:
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2. Sheng R, Chen C, Chen H, Yu P. Repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation for stroke rehabilitation: insights into the molecular and cellular mechanisms of neuroinflammation. Front Immunol. 2023 May 22;14:1197422. doi: 10.3389/fimmu.2023.1197422. PMID: 37283739; PMCID: PMC10239808.
3. Gogulski J, Ross JM, Talbot A, Cline CC, Donati FL, Munot S, Kim N, Gibbs C, Bastin N, Yang J, Minasi C, Sarkar M, Truong J, Keller CJ. Personalized Repetitive Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation for Depression. Biol Psychiatry Cogn Neurosci Neuroimaging. 2023 Apr;8(4):351-360. doi: 10.1016/j.bpsc.2022.10.006. Epub 2022 Oct 29. PMID: 36792455.
4. Safdar A, Smith MC, Byblow WD, Stinear CM. Applications of Repetitive Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation to Improve Upper Limb Motor Performance After Stroke: A Systematic Review. Neurorehabil Neural Repair. 2023 Dec;37(11-12):837-849. doi: 10.1177/15459683231209722. Epub 2023 Nov 10. PMID: 37947106; PMCID: PMC10685705.
