Table 2.
The basic characteristics of the included studies.
| Trials | Sample size (N) | GenderM/F | Age (years) /time Post-Stroke (months) | Treatment State | Intervention | Coil type | Control | Experimental Design | Outcome Parameters |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Low-frequency rTMS | |||||||||
| Elkholy et al. (2014) | N: 30 | 16/14 | rTMS: 44.06 ± 3.71/ 2.53 ± 0.52 CON: 45.66 ± 4.27/ 2.533 ± 0.516 |
Cerebrovascular accident | rTMS + physical therapy | Double-cone coil | Physical therapy | Frequency: 1 Hz Duration: 20 min x 3 sessions per week, 6 weeks |
1. Muscle tone 2. Walking cadence 3. Walking speed 4. Sensorimotor recovery |
| Kim et al. (2014) | N: 32 rTMS: 22 CON: 10 |
rTMS: 11/11 CON: 6/4 |
rTMS: 67.4 ± 7.8/0.52 ± 0.42 CON: 64.8 ± 11.7/0.49 ± 0.16 |
First-ever ischemic cerebellar/brain stem stroke | rTMS | Figure-of-eight coil | Sham rTMS | Frequency: 1 Hz Duration: 15 min x 5 sessions, 5 days |
1. Walking ability 2. Balance |
| Rastgoo et al. (2016) | N: 20 rTMS: 10 CON: 10 |
rTMS: 8/2 CON: 8/2 |
rTMS: 54.6 ± 11.75/30.2 ± 18.3 CON: 49.7 ± 11/27.4 ± 20.1 |
First-ever stroke resulted in unilateral hemiparesis | rTMS | Figure-of-eight coil | Sham rTMS | Frequency: 1 Hz Duration: 20 min x 5 sessions, 5 days |
1. Muscle spasticity 2. Walking ability 3. Lower limb functions |
| Wang et al. (2012) | N: 24 rTMS: 12 CON: 12 |
rTMS: 7/5 CON: 8/4 |
rTMS: 64.90 ± 12.37/22.08 ± 13.92 CON: 62.98 ± 10.88/12.00 ± 14.76 |
Unilateral hemiparesis secondary to cerebrovascular accident | rTMS + task-oriented treatment | Figure-of-eight coil | Sham rTMS + task-oriented treatment | Frequency: 1 Hz Duration: 10 min x 10 sessions, 2 weeks |
1. Motor performance 2. Walking performance |
| 2. High-frequency rTMS | |||||||||
| Chieffo et al. (2014) | N: 10 rTMS: 10 CON: 10 |
NA | 62.2 ± 10.23/21 ± 7.29 | First-ever stroke in the middle cerebral artery | rTMS | H-coil | Sham rTMS | Frequency: 20 Hz Duration: 30 min x 10 sessions, 3 weeks |
1. Lower limb functions 2. Walking ability |
| Choi et al. (2016) | N: 30 rTMS: 15 CON: 15 |
rTMS: 14/1 CON: 13/2 |
rTMS: 67.1 ± 3.8/49.6 ± 28.3 CON: 68.7 ± 5.2/44.0 ± 29.9 |
Chronic stroke in in the middle cerebral artery | rTMS | Figure-of-eight coil | Sham rTMS | Frequency: 10 Hz Duration: 10 min x 10 sessions, 2 weeks |
1. Balance |
| Goh et al. (2020) | N: 15 | 10/5 | 57.7 ± 9.7/ 22.8 ± 16.7 | First-ever left hemispheric stroke | rTMS | Double-cone coil | NA | Frequency: 5 Hz Duration: 16 min x 3 sessions, 7 ± 2days |
1. Gait speed |
| Ji et al. (2016) | N: 30 rTMS: 15 CON: 15 |
rTMS: 8/7 CON: 9/6 |
rTMS: 53.80 ± 8.07/1.80 ± 0.77 CON: 56.33 ± 10.98/1.66 ± 0.61 |
Ischemic and hemispheric stroke | rTMS | Figure-of-eight coil | Sham rTMS | Frequency: 10 Hz Duration: 15 min x 5 sessions per week, 4 weeks |
1. Static balance 2. Dynamic balance |
| Kakuda et al. (2013) | N: 19 | 10/9 | 56.2 ± 11.9/61.0 ± 26.1 | A single symptomatic supratentorial stroke | rTMS + mobility training | Double-cone coil | NA | Frequency: 10 Hz Duration: 20 min x 20 sessions, 13 days |
1. Walking velocity 2. Lower limb functions |
| Wang et al. (2019) | N: 14 rTMS: 8 CON: 6 |
rTMS: 7/1 CON: 4/2 |
rTMS: 53.5 ± 13.7/31.8 ± 24.0 CON: 54.7 ± 12.2/25.3 ± 15.7 |
Unilateral hemiparesis secondary to stroke | rTMS | Figure-of-eight coil | Sham rTMS | Frequency: 5 Hz Duration: 15 min x 3 sessions per week, 3 weeks |
1. Walking speed 2. Gait symmetry 3. Lower limb functions 4. Muscle activity |
N, number; M, male; F, female; rTMS, repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation; CON, control interventions; NA, not available.