Researchers Say Brain Stimulation Device May Slow Alzheimer's Symptoms

The approved treatments for Alzheimer's disease - a progressive brain disorder that causes the gradual decline of memory and thinking skills – medicine that does not have too much of an effect causes severe and sometimes even deadly side effects. And so, that’s why scientists look for therapies that can manage the diseases’ symptoms without involving drugs.

One of the successful experimental therapies that can slow the progression of symptoms is the transcranial magnetic stimulation or TMS device – which is also used for treating depression and other mental illnesses safely.

According to researchers, who presented their findings at the Clinical Trials in Alzheimer's Disease meeting in Madrid, they have been able to target a key brain network involved in storing memories – which is hit the hardest by the disease. Scientists said they found that when the device was aimed at the right spot in the brain, it could slow the development of symptoms like memory loss as compared to an inactive treatment.

Alzheimer's is characterized by changes in your brain that lead to deposits of certain proteins – beta-amyloid and tau - which cause the brain to shrink and brain cells to eventually die, causing memory loss.

Many previous studies have indicated that the accumulation of beta-amyloid and tau damages the ability of neurons to form new connections and maintain existing ones. “The goal is to restore connections between neurons by enhancing activity in certain areas relevant to the disease,” Dr. Giacomo Koch, a professor of human physiology at the University of Ferrara and one of the co-founders of Sinaptica, the Cambridge, Massachusetts-based company currently developing the therapy, told NBC News. “This therapy is like training for the neurons.”

TMS works just like exercise strengthening muscles and the electrical signals generated by the TMS can also enhance the ability of neurons to make connections with one another.

Around 7 million people have Alzheimer’s in the US and the number is said to reach 13.8 million by 2060, according to the Alzheimer’s Association. The new study, a phase 2 clinical trial, included 32 volunteers with Alzheimer’s disease, aged 56 to 88 at the start of the study, who were followed for 52 weeks. Sixteen of the participants who got the treatment were women.

According to the researchers, they could find the exact spot in the brain’s default mode network, involved in storing memories of life events, that would benefit the most from electrical stimulation by using TMS to “ping” various sites. Nudging the exact spot into action by the electricity, a signal would spread through the network like the ripples seen when a stone is tossed into a body of water.

At least 18 volunteers were given weekly 20-minute sessions with the TMS while 14 others received so-called sham treatments, in which participants were treated as if they were getting TMS therapy, but without the device being turned on, to rule out the placebo effect. The TMS device was crucial to the research because it allowed electrical signals to be generated in the brain without any sensation.

“It would be almost impossible to use an electrical current because it would be very painful,” Koch said. “In this case, we can use very powerful magnetic fields, which are well tolerated and safe to induce strong electrical currents in the brain.”

Side effects included mild headaches, skin discomfort, and neck pain.

After comparing the two groups using standard cognitive tests, the researchers found that the patients receiving TMS therapy had a 44 per cent slower rate of symptoms worsening. Also, those receiving a TMS trial for a year showed little decline in their abilities to perform the activities of daily living. “That’s important not only for the patient but also for caregivers,” Koch said.

The researchers are now planning a phase 3 trial, which would be needed for Food and Drug Administration approval.

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