Sanal-Hayes, Nilihan E. M. and Slade, Kate and Mclaughlin, Marie and Berry, Ethan and Swift, Emma and Humphreys, Gabrielle and Hasshim, Nabil and Royle, William S. and Hayes, Lawrence D. (2026) Therapeutic Potential of Repetitive Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS) in Long COVID : A Systematic Review with Structured Narrative Synthesis. COVID, 6 (6): 90. ISSN 2673-8112
Full text not available from this repository.Abstract
Background: Globally, around 400 million people are estimated to be affected by long COVID, yet treatment options remain scarce. A systematic review published in 2025 indicated that non-invasive brain stimulation may help reduce some long COVID symptoms. If repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) has therapeutic potential for these patients, then a clear synthesis of the evidence is necessary to determine efficacy and potential for implementation. Methodology: This systematic review and narrative synthesis was conducted in accordance with PRISMA guidelines. The search, completed on the 4th of December 2025, covered four databases and grey literature. Studies were included if they examined long COVID and rTMS. Findings: A meta-analysis was not possible due to insufficient reported data across studies. Instead, a structured narrative synthesis was conducted on four included studies. The structured narrative synthesis of four studies indicates that rTMS is feasible and is associated with reported improvements in fatigue, mood, and cognitive symptoms in individuals with long COVID. However, all included evidence is based on uncontrolled case series and retrospective analyses, meaning no causal conclusions can be drawn and findings should be interpreted as exploratory. Conclusions: Taken together, the evidence remains preliminary and highlights the need for well-designed randomised controlled trials to assess efficacy.