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Authors & Affiliations
Casto Rivadulla Fernandez, Catia Martinez-Barjas, Teresa Lema-Facal, Francisco Javier López-González, Eduardo Suarez, Concepción Paz, Javier Cudeiro
Abstract
Globally, epilepsy afflicts more than 50 million people, and one-third of these individuals remain unresponsive to conventional drugs. In response to this challenge, Transcranial Static Magnetic Stimulation (tSMS) has emerged as a noninvasive neuromodulatory approach capable of reducing heightened cortical excitability, a characteristic feature in various forms of epilepsy. This project aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of a pilot clinical program implementing tSMS for refractory focal epilepsy.Thus far, four patients with refractory focal epilepsy, drawn from the University Hospitals of Coruña and Santiago de Compostela, have undergone treatment. The protocol involved the daily application of a nickel-plated NdFeB magnet (0.5 Tesla) over the epileptic focus for 30 minutes over a four-week period, guided by EEG localization. Follow-up EEG assessments were conducted at the end of the treatment and one month thereafter.Remarkably, no adverse side effects were noted. On average, seizures decreased by 65% during the treatment month compared to the previous one, with a sustained positive effect into the subsequent month. Notably, two patients experienced complete seizure absence, while a third observed a 45% reduction (from 16 to 9). The reduction was non-significant in the remaining patient (from 4 to 3). The alleviation of crises correlated with a remarkable improvement in sleep quality.Despite the small sample size, the data strongly suggest that tSMS could effectively reduce seizures in patients resistant to traditional antiepileptic drugs, positioning it as an affordable, simple, and safe therapy for epilepsy—potentially utilized independently or in conjunction with pharmacological treatments.