Effects of 1Hz repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation on autism with intellectual disability: A pilot study

Jiannan Kang; Zhiming Zhang; Lingyan Wan; Manuel F Casanova; Estate M Sokhadze; Xiaoli Li

doi:10.1016/j.compbiomed.2021.105167

Effects of 1Hz repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation on autism with intellectual disability: A pilot study

Comput Biol Med. 2022 Feb:141:105167. doi: 10.1016/j.compbiomed.2021.105167. Epub 2021 Dec 23.

Authors

Jiannan Kang¹, Zhiming Zhang¹, Lingyan Wan¹, Manuel F Casanova², Estate M Sokhadze², Xiaoli Li³

Affiliations

¹ College of Electronic & Information Engineering, Hebei University, Baoding, China.
² Department of Biomedical Sciences, University of South Carolina School of Medicine Greenville Campus, Greenville Health System, Greenville, SC, USA.
³ State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, China. Electronic address: xiaoli@bnu.edu.cn.

PMID: 34959111
DOI: 10.1016/j.compbiomed.2021.105167

Abstract

Objective: To explore whether 1 Hz repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) has positive effects on brain activity and behavior of autistic children with intellectual disability.

Methods: 32 autistic children with intellectual disability (26 boys and 6 girls) were recruited to participate in this feasibility study. The autistic children were divided randomly and equally into an experimental group and a control group. 16 children (three girls and 13 boys; mean ± SD age: 7.8 ± 2.1 years) who received rTMS treatment twice a week were served as the experimental group, while 16 children (three girls and 13 boys; mean ± SD age: 7.2 ± 1.6 years) with sham stimulation were considered as the control group. Recurrence quantification analysis (RQA) was employed to quantify the nonlinear features of electroencephalogram (EEG) signals recorded during the resting state. Three RQA measures, including recursive rate (RR), deterministic (DET) and mean diagonal length (L) were extracted from the EEG signals to characterize the deterministic features of cortical activity.

Results: Significant differences in RR and DET were observed between the experimental group and the control group. We also found discernible discrepancies in the Autism Behavior Checklist (ABC) score pre- and post-rTMS for the experimental group.

Conclusions: 1 Hz repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) could positively influence brain activity and behavior of autistic children with intellectual disability.

Keywords: Autism behavior checklist; Autism spectrum disorder; Intellectual disability; Recurrence quantification analysis; Repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation.

Publication types

Randomized Controlled Trial
Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Autistic Disorder* / therapy
Child
Child, Preschool
Electroencephalography
Female
Humans
Intellectual Disability*
Male
Pilot Projects
Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation