Alteration in motor cortical excitability induced by peripheral stimulation with magnetic stimulation

In recent years, the conditioning of cortical excitability has attracted attention as a valuable function to the recovery of motor function after stroke. Motor cortical excitability can be altered by transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS), and by peripheral stimulation [1]–[3]. This study focused attention on the effects of peripheral stimulation on cortical excitability because TMS is not provided for all patients. Many studies of peripheral stimulation have not focused on the inhibition of cortical excitability. This study investigated the possibility that peripheral stimulation has an adjustment effect of motor cortical excitability, by examining the inhibition of cortical excitability induced by peripheral stimulation. This study used magnetic stimulation as peripheral stimulation, because the eddy currents induced by magnetic stimulation stimulate deeper tissue regions.