J Korean Dysphagia Soc.  2014 Jul;4(2):56-59.

Application of Non-invasive Brain Stimulation on Dysphagia after Stroke

• Yang SN

Abstract

Dysphagia is a major complication after cerebrovascular disease. Non- invasive brain stimulation such as repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) and transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) was recently used in many part of stroke rehabilitation. There are several researches about non-invasive brain stimulation adjusting dysphagia after stroke. The objective of this review is to verify the efficacy of non-invasive brain stimulation in patients with dysphagia after stroke. All studies showed statistically significant effect in treatment group with non-invasive brain stimulation compared to control group at immediately after treatment period. However, long term follow up was not sufficient and there was large heterogeneity among the studies in the type of assessments that were used for dysphagia evaluation, study population, etiology, characteristics of stroke, and the time of intervention after onset. Further studies for the long term effect of non-invasive brain stimulation on dysphagia subsequent stroke will be needed.

Keyword

Dysphagia; Repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation; Transcranial direct current stimulation