Volume 104, Issue 4 pp. 346-355
Review Article

Autism spectrum disorders: linking neuropathological findings to treatment with transcranial magnetic stimulation

Manuel F. Casanova

Corresponding Author

Manuel F. Casanova

Department of Psychiatry, University of Louisville, Louisville, KA, USA

Correspondence

M F Casanova, MD, Gottfried and Gisela Kolb Endowed Chair in Psychiatry, Department of Psychiatry, University of Louisville, 500 South Preston Street, Bldg A, Rm 217, Louisville, KY 40202, USA

Tel.: +1(502)852-4077 |

Email: [email protected]

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Estate Sokhadze

Estate Sokhadze

Department of Psychiatry, University of Louisville, Louisville, KA, USA

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Ioan Opris

Ioan Opris

Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, Wake Forest University School of Medicine, Winston-Salem, NA, USA

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Yao Wang

Yao Wang

Department of Psychiatry, University of Louisville, Louisville, KA, USA

State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, China

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Xiaoli Li

Xiaoli Li

State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, China

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First published: 27 January 2015
Citations: 33

Abstract

Postmortem studies in autism spectrum disorder (ASD) individuals indicate the presence of abnormalities within the peripheral neuropil space (PNS) of cortical minicolumns. The geometrical orientation of inhibitory elements within the PNS suggests using repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) to up-regulate their activity. Several rTMS trials in ASD have shown marked improvements in motor symptomatology, attention and perceptual binding.Conclusion: rTMS is the first therapeutic attempt at ASD aimed at correcting some of its core pathology.

Graphical Abstract

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