Contralesional Inhibitory rTMS for Recovery of Arm Function after Stroke – A Feasibility Trial (CanStim: ConTRA-stroke-f)

The general aim is to verify the feasibility of a protocol (Contrastoke) introducing the repetitive Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (rTMS, a non-invasive stimulating technic) to improve the recovery of motor function in a rehabilitation setting. This will eventually provide a platform to test other brain stimulation modalities and protocols for the treatment of post-stroke deficits.

Specific goals were: 1) that each of the 8 participating sites can recruit the assigned number of patients (6-7) within a certain period (30 months), 2) to perform the stimulation procedure (15 days of treatment using rTMS) in conjunction with the specified physiotherapy intervention (Graded Repetitive Arm Supplementary Program GRASP), 3) to complete the therapy protocol and enter complete datasets for each patient into the CanStim database. 4) to identify potential protocol weaknesses which need to be addressed before initiating a larger scale efficacy trial.