Prefrontal Activity Evoked by Transcranial Magnetic Stimulations (TMS) Is Enhanced by Observing the Behavior of Others

Abstract

Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) is one of non-invasive brain stimulation methods, and is often utilized for rehabilitation combined with repetitive facilitative exercise. The brain activity evoked by TMS was analyzed as functional Near Infrared Spectroscopy (fNIRS) signal from frontal robe. We found that prefrontal blood flow increased by TMS to the motor cortex. In addition, the prefrontal activity was enhanced by observing a video content of an exercise behavior of others, considered to activate mirror neurons. These results suggest the possibility of improving the effect of rehabilitation using TMS by visual priming.