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Effects on Corticospinal Tract Homology of Faremus Personalized Neuromodulation Relieving Fatigue in Multiple Sclerosis: A Proof-of-Concept Study

Authors :
Massimo Bertoli
Angela Tataranni
Susanna Porziani
Patrizio Pasqualetti
Eugenia Gianni
Joy Grifoni
Teresa L’Abbate
Karolina Armonaite
Livio Conti
Andrea Cancelli
Carlo Cottone
Franco Marinozzi
Fabiano Bini
Federico Cecconi
Franca Tecchio
Source :
Brain Sciences, Vol 13, Iss 4, p 574 (2023)
Publication Year :
2023
Publisher :
MDPI AG, 2023.

Abstract

Objectives: Fatigue in multiple sclerosis (MS) is a frequent and invalidating symptom, which can be relieved by non-invasive neuromodulation, which presents only negligible side effects. A 5-day transcranial direct-current stimulation, 15 min per day, anodically targeting the somatosensory representation of the whole body against a larger occipital cathode was efficacious against MS fatigue (fatigue relief in multiple sclerosis, Faremus treatment). The present proof-of-concept study tested the working hypothesis that Faremus S1 neuromodulation modifies the homology of the dominant and non-dominant corticospinal (CST) circuit recruitment. Methods: CST homology was assessed via the Fréchet distance between the morphologies of motor potentials (MEPs) evoked by transcranial magnetic stimulation in the homologous left- and right-hand muscles of 10 fatigued MS patients before and after Faremus. Results: In the absence of any change in MEP features either as differences between the two body sides or as an effect of the treatment, Faremus changed in physiological direction the CST’s homology. Faremus effects on homology were more evident than recruitment changes within the dominant and non-dominant sides. Conclusions: The Faremus-related CST changes extend the relevance of the balance between hemispheric homologs to the homology between body sides. With this work, we contribute to the development of new network-sensitive measures that can provide new insights into the mechanisms of neuronal functional patterning underlying relevant symptoms.

Details

Language :
English
ISSN :
20763425
Volume :
13
Issue :
4
Database :
Directory of Open Access Journals
Journal :
Brain Sciences
Publication Type :
Academic Journal
Accession number :
edsdoj.bc6559a57104bce882ee773da13299e
Document Type :
article
Full Text :
https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci13040574