TY  - JOUR
A1  - Heidegger, Tonio
A1  - Hansen-Goos, Onno
A1  - Batlaeva, Olga
A1  - Annak, Onur
A1  - Ziemann, Ulf
A1  - Lötsch, Jörn
T1  - A data-driven approach to responder subgroup identification after paired continuous theta burst simulation
T2  - Frontiers in human neuroscience
N2  - Background: Modulation of cortical excitability by transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) is used for investigating human brain functions. A common observation is the high variability of long-term depression (LTD)-like changes in human (motor) cortex excitability. This study aimed at analyzing the response subgroup distribution after paired continuous theta burst stimulation (cTBS) as a basis for subject selection.
Methods: The effects of paired cTBS using 80% active motor threshold (AMT) in 31 healthy volunteers were assessed at the primary motor cortex (M1) corresponding to the representation of the first dorsal interosseous (FDI) muscle of the left hand, before and up to 50 min after plasticity induction. The changes in motor evoked potentials (MEPs) were analyzed using machine-learning derived methods implemented as Gaussian mixture modeling (GMM) and computed ABC analysis.
Results: The probability density distribution of the MEP changes from baseline was tri-modal, showing a clear separation at 80.9%. Subjects displaying at least this degree of LTD-like changes were n = 6 responders. By contrast, n = 7 subjects displayed a paradox response with increase in MEP. Reassessment using ABC analysis as alternative approach led to the same n = 6 subjects as a distinct category.
Conclusion: Depressive effects of paired cTBS using 80% AMT endure at least 50 min, however, only in a small subgroup of healthy subjects. Hence, plasticity induction by paired cTBS might not reflect a general mechanism in human motor cortex excitability. A mathematically supported criterion is proposed to select responders for enrolment in assessments of human brain functional networks using virtual brain lesions.
KW  - transcranial magnetic stimulation
KW  - paired continuous theta burst stimulation
KW  - subject selection
KW  - heterogeneity of plasticity effects
KW  - data science
Y1  - 2017
UR  - http://publikationen.ub.uni-frankfurt.de/frontdoor/index/index/docId/44720
UR  - https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:hebis:30:3-447207
N1  - © 2017 Heidegger, Hansen-Goos, Batlaeva, Annak, Ziemann and Lötsch. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
VL  - 11
IS  - article 382
ER  -