Repetitive Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation for Enhancing Motor Recovery in Post-Operative Brain Tumor Patients

Background: When doctors perform surgery to remove brain tumors, their goal is to take out as much of the tumor as possible while keeping the patient's brain functions intact. However, sometimes patients have trouble with movements like walking or using their hands after surgery. One reason for this is unintentional damage to important areas of the brain during the operation. A technique called Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS) might help patients recover these lost abilities faster. What We're Doing: We're conducting a study to see if TMS can help patients recover their movement abilities after brain tumor surgery. TMS uses magnetic pulses to stimulate specific parts of the brain. In our study, we'll treat six patients with TMS once per day for three days in a row. Three patients with recent movement difficulties one to two weeks after surgery will be recruited for this study; they will also receive physical therapy. An additional three patients with persisting movement difficulties up to three years after tumor surgery will also be recruited for this study, regardless of whether or not they receive physical therapy. How We'll Measure Success: We'll use two standard tests to see how well patients can move before and after the TMS treatment. These tests will help us understand if TMS is making a difference in their recovery. In Summary: We are testing a technique that uses magnetic pulses to help patients move better after brain surgery. Our hope is that this method will prove to be a safe and effective way to speed up recovery.

Are you Eligible? (Inclusion Criteria)

• Patients aged 22-65 years old who have undergone surgical resection for a brain tumor. 2. Undergoing any form of prior therapy (i.e., chemotherapy radiation), other than previous TMS therapy. 3. Acute patients include patients who present with sustained post-operative motor deficits at 1-2 weeks postoperatively as defined by the presence of British Medical Research Council (MRC) motor scores of 3/5 or less, or a sustained decrement by one point on the MRC score in the affected extremity. 4. Chronic patients include patients who present within three years of surgery with chronic, persistent motor-functional deficits will be included to demonstrate generalizability of safety and efficacy in neurosurgery patients with chronic deficits.