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Volume 3
Journal of Neurology and Clinical Neuroscience
Neurology 2019 | Neuropsychology 2019 | Drug Delivery Summit 2019
June 24-25, 2019
June 24-25, 2019 | Rome, Italy
Neurology and Healthcare
3
rd
WorldDrug Delivery and Formulations Summit
Clinical and Experimental Neuropsychology
4
th
International Conference on
International Conference on
&
Low frequency transcranial magnetic stimulation: a potential therapeutic tool in the treatment of autism
spectrum disorders
Olivia Bell
Bristol University, UK
A
utism Spectrum disorders are a group of early-onset neurodevelopmental pervasive disorders defined by a core triad
of symptoms: qualitative abnormalities in reciprocal social interaction, communication and restricted, repetitive and
stereotyped behaviours. Affecting 1% of the population and accounting for 58 Disability-Adjusted Life-Years (DALYs) per
100,000 population, autism causes a significant burden to health and social services. The heterogeneous nature of autism has
impeded effective targeting. The Prefrontal Cortex (PFC), pivotal in socio-emotional processing, is thus proposed as a target,
to modulate implicated regional dysfunction in connectivity and excitability. Repetitive Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation
(rTMS) is an emerging tool in psychopathology. Data suggests low-frequency stimulation-induced inhibition of the PFC could
mediate the elevated excitation/inhibition imbalance. Consequent interneuron attenuation causes functional reorganisation
of the PFC, resulting in core symptom alleviation. Although available TMS studies in autism are preliminary, they provide
promising evidence for therapeutic benefit including reductions in repetitive behaviours, attentional-processing and Event-
Related Potential (ERP) normalisation. Therefore, bilateral weekly Dorsolateral Prefrontal Cortex (DLPFC) stimulation at 180
pulses for 18 weeks at 90% MT and 1HZ will be applied. To consolidate the most effective regional and temporal window
targeting, PFC stimulation will be directly compared to superior temporal sulcus and considered across age-groups. Targeting
critical-period plasticity could elicit efficacious long-lasting cortical modulation, restoring local-circuit maturation, reducing
symptomatology in adulthood. This report proposes rTMS as a promising tool in the alleviation of autistic cortical manifestations.
Biography
Olivia Bell is a medical student and pursuing her studies at Bristol University. Her interests and research experience are focused on
neurology aspects as well as neurological disorders and especially autism spectrum disorders.
ob15463@my.bristol.ac.ukJ Neurol Clin Neurosci, Volume 3