Neuro-Cardiac-Guided Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (NCG-TMS) was studied for its potential to specifically target the frontal-vagal network. Previous research demonstrated that prefrontal stimulation led to significant heartrate slowing. We aimed to replicate these results in a larger sample and extend the findings to investigate dose-response relationships, reproducibility and stimulation frequency (10 Hz and intermittent theta burst (iTBS)). Data of forty-five healthy controls were analyzed, of which 28 received 10 Hz TMS (NCG-TMS) and 27 iTBS (NCG-iTBS; 10 received both protocols) at different stimulation sites according to the 10−20-EEG system. NCG-TMS yielded a relative heartrate deceleration at the F3/4 coil position replicating earlier studies. Both internal consistency and dose-response relationships were found. For NCG-iTBS adverse events were reported and topography for frontal-vagal activation was more lateralised relative to NCG-TMS. These results indicate that we were able to transsynaptically stimulate the frontal-vagal network and that excitability thresholds for the prefrontal cortex may differ relative to motor cortex.

研究了神经心脏引导的经颅磁刺激（NCG-TMS）的潜力，它有可能专门针对额-迷走神经网络。先前的研究表明前额叶刺激导致明显的心律减慢。我们旨在将这些结果复制到更大的样本中，并扩大研究范围，以研究剂量反应关系，重现性和刺激频率（10 Hz和间歇性theta爆发（iTBS））。分析了45个健康对照的数据，根据10-20-EEG系统，其中28个在不同刺激部位接受了10 Hz TMS（NCG-TMS），27个iTBS（NCG-iTBS； 10个接受了两种方案）。NCG-TMS重复了先前的研究，在F3 / 4线圈位置产生了相对的心率减速度。发现内部一致性和剂量反应关系。对于NCG-iTBS，有不良事件的报道，并且相对于NCG-TMS，迷走神经额叶激活的地形更加偏侧。这些结果表明，我们能够突触刺激额-迷走神经网络，并且额前皮层的兴奋性阈值可能相对于运动皮层有所不同。