Transcranial ultrasound pulse stimulation reduces cortical atrophy in Alzheimer's patients: A follow-up study

Introduction Ultrasound for the brain is a revolutionary therapeutic concept. The first clinical data indicate that 2-4 weeks of therapy with transcranial pulse stimulation (TPS) improve functional networks and cognitive performance of Alzheimer's disease (AD) patients for up to 3 months. No data currently exist on possible benefits concerning brain morphology, namely the cortical atrophy characteristic of AD. Methods We performed a pre-/post-therapy analysis of cortical thickness in a group of N = 17 AD patients. Results We found a significant correlation between neuropsychological improvement and cortical thickness increase in AD-critical brain areas. Discussion AD patients who benefit from TPS appear to manifest reduced cortical atrophy within the default mode network in particular, whose memory-related subsystems are believed to be disrupted in AD. TPS may therefore hold promise as a new add-on therapy for AD.