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Effects of alpha rhythm-guided repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation on sleep and quality of life outcomes in autistic children: A chart review
Journal article   Open access   Peer reviewed

Effects of alpha rhythm-guided repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation on sleep and quality of life outcomes in autistic children: A chart review

Uchenna Ezedinma, Evan Jones, Scott Burgess, Gary Campbell, Shauna Fjaagesund, Alexandra Metse, Terri Downer and Florin Oprescu
Research in Autism, Vol.131, pp.1-8
2026
Appears in  Thompson Institute Research Collection
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Effects of alpha rhythm-guided repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation on sleep and quality of life outcomes in autistic children A chart review803.68 kBDownloadView
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Abstract

Autism Sleep difficulties Quality of life Repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation UniSC Diversity Area - Life Stages Thompson Institute Special Collection Other Collaborations Sleep
Purpose There is growing, albeit limited, evidence regarding the effects of alpha rhythm-guided repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (α-rTMS) on sleep and quality of life outcomes in autistic children within a clinical setting. Methods Clinical charts, including the Children Sleep Habit Questionnaire (CSHQ) and the Paediatric Quality of Life Inventory 4.0 (PedsQLTM 4.0), were collected from participants before and after they completed nine sessions of α-rTMS. The pre-post data were analysed using paired Student t-tests. Results Data from the clinical charts of 36 participants (24 males and 12 females) aged between 3 and 17 years (mean (SD): 7.6 (3.5) years) were analysed. Among the participants, eight (22 %) and twenty-eight (78 %) were diagnosed with autism levels 2 and 3, respectively. The mean pre-post CSHQ analysis revealed significant improvements in the total CSHQ score (p = 0.035) and in specific subdomains: sleep duration (p = 0.035), night waking (p = 0.050), and daytime sleepiness (p = 0.026). Additionally, the mean post-total PedsQLTM 4.0 score showed significant improvement (p = 0.005), including in the emotional (p < 0.001), social (p = 0.018), and school (p = 0.019) subdomains. Conclusion This study contributes to the growing evidence on the positive effects of α-rTMS on sleep difficulties and the quality of life of autistic children. Nonetheless, the findings should be interpreted cautiously until larger numbers of participants are studied within a robust study design.

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Education, Special
Psychiatry
Psychology, Developmental
Rehabilitation

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