Inclusion criteria | Exclusion criteria |
---|---|
Mini Mental State Examination (MMSE) [29] score between 20 and 26 | Lack of knowledge of Spanish or Catalan |
Global Deterioration Scale (GDS) [30] score of 3 or 4 | Less than 4 years of schooling |
Functional independence for basic daily life activities (part B of the Blessed Scale) [31] score equal to 0 | Intellectual deficiency (Premorbid IQ, vocabulary, less than 85) |
Rosen Ischemia Scale less or equal to 4 [32] | No controlled medical conditions or severe mental disorders that may affect the central nervous system, including signs of increased intracranial pressure or intracranial lesions |
Able to read and write | Not controlled medical conditions that may cause emergencies or convulsions (e.g.: vascular risk, cardiac malformations or arrhythmias, asthma, etc.) |
Stable medical and pharmacological condition during the 3 months immediately before the start of the study | Medical history of convulsions, previous diagnosis of epilepsy, previous registry of abnormal electroencephalogram (EEG) or family history of epilepsy |
Computerized tomography scan and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in the 12 months prior to the selection, compatible with the diagnosis of probable AD in the subjects diagnosed | Severe hearing problems or ringing in the ears (tinnitus) |
Absence of clinically significant anomalies in the medical history or clinical laboratory results during the selection | Severe loss of visual acuity |
Screening analyses within normal range to detect and exclude other causes of dementia in the 12 months previous to selection. Laboratory values considered are as follows: complete blood count, thyroid hormones (TSH), T4, folic acid, vitamin B12, albumin, transaminase alanine (ALT), aminotransferase aspartate (AST), gamma-glutamic transferase (GGT), sodium, potassium, urea, creatinine, and glucose while fasting | Moderate or severe depression defined as a score > 11 in the Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS) [33] |
Being treated by Acetylcholinesterase Inhibitors | Presence of tremors or lack of motor control of the dominant upper limb |
Willingness to undergo MRI scan | Being under pharmacological treatment with medications indicated in the security TMS guidelines [34] |
Signed consent form, previously approved by the Institutional Review Board of the Consorci Sanitari de Terrassa | Drug or alcohol consumption or history of abuse in the 24 months prior to the study |
Implants of metal pieces in the head (excluding dental implants) | |
Any of the following medical devices: pacemaker, implanted medication pumps, vagal nerve stimulators, deep cerebral stimulators, transcutaneous electrical stimulation units, ventriculo-peritoneal derivations, titanium plates, cochlear implants, aneurysm clips, etc. |