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Combining TMS and EEG Offers New Prospects in Cognitive Neuroscience

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Abstract

The combination of brain stimulation by transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) with simultaneous electroencephalographic (EEG) imaging has become feasible due to recent technical developments. The TMS-EEG integration provides real-time information on cortical reactivity and connectivity through the analysis of TMS-evoked potentials (TEPs), and how functional activity links to behavior through the study of TMS-induced modulations thereof. It reveals how these effects vary as a function of neuronal state, differing between individuals and patient groups but also changing rapidly over time during task performance. This review discusses the wide range of possible TMS-EEG applications and what new information may be gained using this technique on the dynamics of brain functions, hierarchical organization, and cortical connectivity, as well as on TMS action per se. An advance in the understanding of these issues is timely and promises to have a substantial impact on many areas of clinical and basic neuroscience.

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Notes

  1. It is important to point out that these two techniques are far more complex than can be adequately discussed in this paper. TMS can be used in many different ways (e.g., as single or multiple pulses, at high or low frequency) and the outcome of TMS will depend on a number of technical variables, such as the frequency or intensity of stimulation and the timing of TMS application, i.e., before, in the initial phase, or in the final phase of the task. In the same way, EEG data can be analyzed with many different approaches, producing results that may reveal different sides of the same coin, although the relationship between them remains unclear.

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Acknowledgements

We thank Debora Brignani and Domenica Veniero for useful discussions.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Biomedical Sciences and Biotechnology, National Institute of Neuroscience-Italy, University of Brescia, Viale Europa 11, 25123, Brescia, Italy

    Carlo Miniussi

  2. Cognitive Neuroscience Section, IRCCS San Giovanni di Dio Fatebenefratelli, Via Pilastroni 4, 25125, Brescia, Italy

    Carlo Miniussi

  3. Centre for Cognitive NeuroImaging, Department of Psychology, University of Glasgow, 58 Hillhead Street, Glasgow, G12 8QB, UK

    Gregor Thut

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  1. Carlo Miniussi
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  2. Gregor Thut
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Correspondence to Carlo Miniussi.

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This is one of several papers published together in Brain Topography on the “Special Topic: TMS and EEG.”

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Miniussi, C., Thut, G. Combining TMS and EEG Offers New Prospects in Cognitive Neuroscience. Brain Topogr 22, 249–256 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10548-009-0083-8

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