Neurostimulation devices to treat Alzheimer’s disease
The use of neurostimulation devices for the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is a growing field. In this review, we examine the mechanism of action and therapeutic indications of these neurostimulation devices in the AD process. Rapid advancements in neurostimulation technologies are providing...
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| Language: | English |
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Open Exploration Publishing Inc.
2025-02-01
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| Series: | Exploration of Neuroscience |
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| Online Access: | https://www.explorationpub.com/uploads/Article/A100674/100674.pdf |
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| author | Felipe P. Perez Brett Walker Jorge Morisaki Haitham Kanakri Maher Rizkalla |
| author_facet | Felipe P. Perez Brett Walker Jorge Morisaki Haitham Kanakri Maher Rizkalla |
| author_sort | Felipe P. Perez |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | The use of neurostimulation devices for the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is a growing field. In this review, we examine the mechanism of action and therapeutic indications of these neurostimulation devices in the AD process. Rapid advancements in neurostimulation technologies are providing non-pharmacological relief to patients affected by AD pathology. Neurostimulation therapies include electrical stimulation that targets the circuitry-level connection in important brain areas such as the hippocampus to induce therapeutic neuromodulation of dysfunctional neural circuitry and electromagnetic field (EMF) stimulation that targets anti-amyloid molecular pathways to promote the degradation of beta-amyloid (Aβ). These devices target specific or diffuse cortical and subcortical brain areas to modulate neuronal activity at the electrophysiological or molecular pathway level, providing therapeutic effects for AD. This review attempts to determine the most effective and safe neurostimulation device for AD and provides an overview of potential and current clinical indications. Several EMF devices have shown a beneficial or harmful effect in cell cultures and animal models but not in AD human studies. These contradictory results may be related to the stimulation parameters of these devices, such as frequency, penetration depth, power deposition measured by specific absorption rate, time of exposure, type of cell, and tissue dielectric properties. Based on this, determining the optimal stimulation parameters for EMF devices in AD and understanding their mechanism of action is essential to promote their clinical application, our review suggests that repeated EMF stimulation (REMFS) is the most appropriate device for human AD treatments. Before its clinical application, it is necessary to consider the complicated and interconnected genetic and epigenetic effects of REMFS-biological system interaction. This will move forward the urgently needed therapy of EMF in human AD. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-6a81bdaaf1df430da230a3a96bbddd97 |
| institution | OA Journals |
| issn | 2834-5347 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-02-01 |
| publisher | Open Exploration Publishing Inc. |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Exploration of Neuroscience |
| spelling | doaj-art-6a81bdaaf1df430da230a3a96bbddd972025-08-20T02:10:35ZengOpen Exploration Publishing Inc.Exploration of Neuroscience2834-53472025-02-01410067410.37349/en.2025.100674Neurostimulation devices to treat Alzheimer’s diseaseFelipe P. Perez0https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0068-5252Brett Walker1Jorge Morisaki2Haitham Kanakri3Maher Rizkalla4Department of Medicine, Division of General Internal Medicine and Geriatrics, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, IN 46202, USADepartment of Medicine, Division of General Internal Medicine and Geriatrics, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, IN 46202, USADepartment of Bioengineering, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL 60607, USADepartment of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Purdue University, Indianapolis, IN 46202, USADepartment of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Purdue University, Indianapolis, IN 46202, USAThe use of neurostimulation devices for the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is a growing field. In this review, we examine the mechanism of action and therapeutic indications of these neurostimulation devices in the AD process. Rapid advancements in neurostimulation technologies are providing non-pharmacological relief to patients affected by AD pathology. Neurostimulation therapies include electrical stimulation that targets the circuitry-level connection in important brain areas such as the hippocampus to induce therapeutic neuromodulation of dysfunctional neural circuitry and electromagnetic field (EMF) stimulation that targets anti-amyloid molecular pathways to promote the degradation of beta-amyloid (Aβ). These devices target specific or diffuse cortical and subcortical brain areas to modulate neuronal activity at the electrophysiological or molecular pathway level, providing therapeutic effects for AD. This review attempts to determine the most effective and safe neurostimulation device for AD and provides an overview of potential and current clinical indications. Several EMF devices have shown a beneficial or harmful effect in cell cultures and animal models but not in AD human studies. These contradictory results may be related to the stimulation parameters of these devices, such as frequency, penetration depth, power deposition measured by specific absorption rate, time of exposure, type of cell, and tissue dielectric properties. Based on this, determining the optimal stimulation parameters for EMF devices in AD and understanding their mechanism of action is essential to promote their clinical application, our review suggests that repeated EMF stimulation (REMFS) is the most appropriate device for human AD treatments. Before its clinical application, it is necessary to consider the complicated and interconnected genetic and epigenetic effects of REMFS-biological system interaction. This will move forward the urgently needed therapy of EMF in human AD.https://www.explorationpub.com/uploads/Article/A100674/100674.pdfalzheimer’s diseasetreatmentelectromagnetic fields stimulationdevicespreclinicalclinicalreview |
| spellingShingle | Felipe P. Perez Brett Walker Jorge Morisaki Haitham Kanakri Maher Rizkalla Neurostimulation devices to treat Alzheimer’s disease Exploration of Neuroscience alzheimer’s disease treatment electromagnetic fields stimulation devices preclinical clinical review |
| title | Neurostimulation devices to treat Alzheimer’s disease |
| title_full | Neurostimulation devices to treat Alzheimer’s disease |
| title_fullStr | Neurostimulation devices to treat Alzheimer’s disease |
| title_full_unstemmed | Neurostimulation devices to treat Alzheimer’s disease |
| title_short | Neurostimulation devices to treat Alzheimer’s disease |
| title_sort | neurostimulation devices to treat alzheimer s disease |
| topic | alzheimer’s disease treatment electromagnetic fields stimulation devices preclinical clinical review |
| url | https://www.explorationpub.com/uploads/Article/A100674/100674.pdf |
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