Abstract
Transcranial focused ultrasound is an emerging technique for non-invasive neurostimulation. Compared to magnetic or electric non-invasive brain stimulation, this technique has a higher spatial resolution and can reach deep structures. In addition, both animal and human studies suggest that, potentially, different sites of the central and peripheral nervous system can be targeted by this technique. Depending on stimulation parameters, transcranial focused ultrasound is able to determine a wide spectrum of effects, ranging from suppression or facilitation of neural activity to tissue ablation. The aim is to review the state of the art of the human transcranial focused ultrasound neuromodulation literature, including the theoretical principles which underlie the explanation of the bioeffects on neural tissues, and showing the stimulation techniques and parameters used and their outcomes in terms of clinical, neurophysiological or neuroimaging results and safety.
Highlights
Preliminary animal studies suggest that, potentially, different sites in the peripheral nervous system, from nerves [1] to spinal roots [2], and in the central nervous system, from superficial regions like primary motor cortex [3] or frontal eye field [4], to more deep areas like hippocampus [3], amygdala [5], or thalamus [6] can be targeted by focused ultrasound stimulation technique
This study showed no significant change in electromyographic response during magnetic plus US ulnar nerve stimulation
Concentric and concurrent transcranial focused ultrasound (tFUS)/transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) on M1 inhibited the amplitude of single-pulse MEPs, attenuated intracortical facilitation, did not affect intracortical inhibition and significantly reduced reaction time in a motor task
Summary
Preliminary animal studies suggest that, potentially, different sites in the peripheral nervous system, from nerves [1] to spinal roots [2], and in the central nervous system, from superficial regions like primary motor cortex [3] or frontal eye field [4], to more deep areas like hippocampus [3], amygdala [5], or thalamus [6] can be targeted by focused ultrasound stimulation technique. Animal studies showed that this technique has a high spatial resolution, useful for mapping small brain areas, as shown by Fry [7] for the mapping of lateral geniculate nucleus, or by Ballantine et al [2] for the stimulation of Edinger-Westphal nucleus. The first human application of focused transcranial ultrasound (tFUS) technique was described by Legon et al [10]
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
