by Giulia Mazza
After 24 months of treatment with static transcranial magnetic brain stimulation, over 70% of patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) survived without the need for mechanical ventilation, compared to 35% who had not received this treatment. This data emerges from a study by researchers at the Campus Bio-Medico University Hospital Foundation, led by the professor Vincenzo Di Lazzaro, director of the Neurology Department, together with colleagues from the IRCSS Foundation Italian Auxological Institute, led by teacher. Vincenzo Silani. Made possible by the support of the Nicola Irti Foundation for charitable and cultural works, the results of the study were published in the prestigious journal Lancet Regional Health Europe.
In Italy, there are over 6.000 people with ALS, a neurodegenerative disease that progressively limits motor skills, preventing them from walking, speaking, and swallowing. Over time, it affects the respiratory muscles and requires mechanical ventilation. To date, there are no therapies capable of substantially altering the inexorable progression of the disease. The approach employed in this research uses electroceuticals, non-invasive magnetic stimulation, instead of drugs.
The professor's group Di Lazzaro has been studying its use in ALS for over twenty years. Recently, a new form was introduced that uses a static magnetic field (a powerful magnet). Given its ease of use, it can be used by patients at home, daily, and for extended periods. In a preliminary study in 2019, this stimulation was tested on two patients with rapidly progressive ALS, in whom a significant slowing of disease progression was observed. Launched after this experience, the current study involved 40 patients to evaluate whether stimulation could reduce disease progression over a six-month period. At the end, the researchers observed no significant change: undaunted, they continued the treatment with the patients for another 18 months.
The results looked promising, although Di Lazzaro However, he recommends caution: When a study fails to meet its primary objective and evidence of efficacy emerges from its continuation in a so-called 'open-label' mode, further confirmation is needed. Although the results make us optimistic, we cannot conclude that we have found a cure for ALS. However, we can confidently state that further studies evaluating the efficacy of static magnetic stimulation in a larger number of patients and over a prolonged treatment period are fully warranted.".
