Effects of Combined Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation and Photobiomodulation in Mild Cognitive Impairment: A Randomized Controlled Trial

This study evaluates the synergistic effects of transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) and transcranial photobiomodulation (tPBM) on working memory (WM) in mild cognitive impairment (MCI) patients. In a randomized controlled trial with 88 participants, utilizing a complex WM task (ΔK = 6.41, p = 0.004) alongside functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) to assess cognitive performance and neural correlates(neural metrics from fNIRS indicated enhanced functional connectivity [p = 0.015] and increased wavelet amplitude in task-relevant cortical regions [p = 0.001]), our results indicated that the combined intervention significantly outperformed both monostimulation and sham stimulation in improving WM capacity. A notable strength of this study is the simultaneous application of TMS and tPBM, which maximizes potential synergistic effects while addressing the physical constraints associated with traditional noninvasive brain stimulation (NIBS). Findings underscore dual neuromodulation as a promising noninvasive intervention for MCI, offering insights into cognitive enhancement mechanisms.