Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation for Modulating Muscle Response in Humans

Abstract

Source: Kuhn, Y. et al. Intracortical Inhibition Within the Primary Motor Cortex Can Be Modulated by Changing the Focus of Attention. J. Vis. Exp. (2017)

This video demonstrates the use of transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) to modulate motor neuron activity and measure muscle responses via electromyography (EMG). It outlines the steps for locating the motor hotspot, determining stimulation thresholds, and assessing the effects of subthreshold TMS (subTMS) on cortical inhibition.

Protocol

All procedures involving human participants have been performed in compliance with the institutional, national, and international guidelines for human welfare and have been reviewed by the local institutional review board.

1. Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS)
   1. Fix the reflective markers on the participant's forehead with double-sided adhesive tape.
      NOTE: Reflective markers allow for the constant delivery of TMS to the target area over M1 by using a neuronavigation system (see Figure 1). The advantage of the neuronavigation system is that the coil position can be recorded relative t....

Results

Figure 1. Experimental setup. A. 1. The TMS .......

Materials

List of materials used in this article

Name	Company	Catalog Number	Comments
BlueSensor P	Ambu A/S, Bellerup, Denmark	-	Ag/AgCl surface electrodes for EMG
Polaris Spectra	Northern Digital, Waterloo, ON, Canada	-	neuronavigation system, active or passive markers tracker
Localite TMS Navigator Version 2.0.5	LOCALITE GmbH, Sankt Augustin, Germany	-	navigation system for transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS)
MagVenture MagPro X100	MagVenture A/S, Farum, Denmark	9016E0711	Transcranial magnetic stimulator
MagVenture D-B80	MagVenture A/S, Farum, Denmark	9016E0431	TMS coil (figure-of-eight)
Goniometer	N/A	-	Custom-made goniometer
Othopedic splint	N/A	-	Custom-made splint
Recording software	LabView based	-	Custom-made script