Research progress of diagnostic transcranial magnetic stimulation

Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) is a non-invasive and painless neuroelectrophysiological examination technology. TMS-motor evoked potential (TMS-MEP) is widely used to assess motor cortex excitability and conduction of descending corticobulbar tract and corticospinal tract. Recently, deeper understanding on principles of magnetic stimulation and diversification of stimulation coil and pattern has greatly expanded the application of TMS in clinical diagnosis. Moreover, MEP operation procedures are becoming more scientific and standardized. This paper reviews the progress of conventional diagnostic TMS pattern, several special stimulation patterns and the combined application of TMS, electroencephalograpy (EEG) and fMRI. DOI: 10.3969/j.issn.1672-6731.2017.04.011