Non-invasive Cortical Stimulation as Adjuvant Therapy Intervention to Promote Functional Recovery after Stroke

Background:Over 60 % of the stroke patients show persistent functional impairments that considerably limit their occupational and social life. The development of effective therapeutic strategies for neurorehabilitation aims at increasing functional recovery and subsequently promoting quality of life in the long run. Recent studies in healthy subjects have provided increasing evidence for non-invasive cortical stimulation to enhance cognitive function.

Objective:This article gives an overview of the concept of non-invasive cortical stimulation and outlines the methods and their application with regard to their relevance in stroke rehabilitation.

Method: A systematic literature review was performed.

Results:First results of studies with stroke patients suggest that combining a specific motor training with non-invasive cortical stimulation might transiently improve functional outcome.

Conclusions: Non-invasive cortical stimulation appears to offer a promising option to enhance functional recovery. It might provide an adjuvant intervention in neurorehabilitation in the near future. For translation of this innovative strategy into routine clinical practice it is necessary to get better insight into the underlying mechanisms and to evaluate this therapeutic strategy with controlled multicentre trials.