Effect of repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation on the treatment of depression and social adaptation in patients with stroke

Stroke accompanied by psychiatric disorder and mental performance is one of the most disabling neurological diseases in adults. This study aimed to determine the effectiveness of rTMS on depression and Social adaptation in patients with stroke.

The present research was a quasi-experimental design with pre-test and post-test with an unequal control group. The study population was all stroke patients referred to Tehran Brain and Cognitive Clinic in the first trimester of 2019. Thirty patients were selected using the non-random sampling method, and 15 patients in the experimental group and 15 in the control group were replaced. Beck Depression Inventory, Busque Social Adaptation Self-Assessment Scale, and Repeated Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) were used to measure the study's variables. Data were analyzed using multivariate covariance with SPSS-21 software.

The multivariate analysis of variance findings show that rTMS therapy has reduced and improved the symptoms of depression and Social adaptation in patients with stroke (P<0.01).

It is concluded that unlike drugs with cognitive side effects, rTMS therapy improves cognitive function and ultimately depression based on the findings of this study. Therefore, it is suggested that the research results conducted in this field be used in practice in rehabilitation centers for stroke patients.