BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE:Repetitive transcranial magneticstimulation(rTMS) is a noninvasivemethod which modulates cortical excitability with several studies suggesting that this intervention may affect motor function after stroke.This meta-analysis reviewed the effects of rTMS on upper limb recovery and cortical excitability in patients with stroke.METHODS:We searched for randomized controlled trials published between January 1990 and October 2011 in PubMed,Medline,Cochrane,and CINAHL using the following key words: stroke,cerebrovascular accident,and repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation.The mean effect size and a 95%CI were estimated for the