Fundamentos e aplicabilidade clínica da Estimulação Magnética Transcraniana na Reabilitação das Afasias

Post-stroke recovery is based on neural plastic changes that allow brain reorganization in order to compensate the loss of activity in the affected brain regions. In this line, the neuromodulation techniques, namely Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS), assists to a growing interest from the scientific community, especially for its therapeutic potential to treat stroke related sequels. TMS results from a magnetic field that induces an electrical current in the cerebral cortex, changing intra-cortical excitability and activating distant cortical and subcortical structures throughout specific connections. Therefore, the application of TMS was recently proposed to promote functional recovery in stroke patients, owing to the induced neuroplasticity. This paper review and discusses the different clinical applications of TMS in patients with post-stroke aphasia.