Assessing a brain stimulating technique to reduce swallowing problems after stroke

Each year, thousands of people in the UK suffer the distressing problem of being unable to swallow after a stroke. Whilst waiting for recovery to occur naturally many of these patients have to be fed by a tube directly into the stomach. If recovery does not occur the tube feeding may become permanent. As the cerebral cortex in the brain plays a major role in the initiation of swallowing, ways of stimulating the brain have recently been developed to help swallowing recovery.

The researchers of the current study have started to explore a new form of brain stimulation, called repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS), to see if this can help encourage recovery. The initial results have been promising. They aim to develop and conduct a trial of rTMS to decide whether it is a useful treatment for swallowing problems caused by stroke. Firstly, healthy subjects will be examined to find the best method for applying rTMS with the aim of changing swallowing areas in the brain and improving the act of swallowing. The researchers will then explore the effects of rTMS in stroke patients with swallowing problems, and hope that rTMS might become a routine treatment in these individuals, if successful. A therapy such as rTMS, that could speed up the recovery of the swallowing process and reduce the need for artificial feeding, would be of great benefit to the future of the patient and the health service.

Scientific Title: Assessing the therapeutic potential of repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation in accelerating recovery from oropharyngeal dysphagia after acute hemispheric stroke

Classification:
Rehabilitation, Neurorehabilitation

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