Ask Dr. Nick
On today’s episode, Dr. Nick talks about how multiple sclerosis patients can benefit from tongue stimulation. Multiple sclerosis (MS) is an autoimmune disease in which the immune system attacks the myelin surrounding the connections between brain and spinal cord cells. This can lead to a variety of symptoms like chronic pain, numbness/tingling, blurred/double vision, dizziness, headaches, cognitive deficits, and poor coordination.
As you will see in the video, tongue stimulation paired with physical therapy and cognitive rehabilitation improved motor performance and cognition compared to no tongue stimulation. At the same time, there was improved neuroplasticity in brain areas related to these functions.
The tongue is known as the “bridge” to the brain because it has many cranial nerves innervating it. This means that tongue stimulation is a powerful stimulus into the brainstem and then up to the cortex. Check out the video for more in depth information on how tongue stimulation can be a powerful tool for many patients!
Leonard G, Lapierre Y, Chen JK, Wardini R, Crane J, Ptito A. Noninvasive tongue stimulation combined with intensive cognitive and physical rehabilitation induces neuroplastic changes in patients with multiple sclerosis: A multimodal neuroimaging study. Mult Scler J Exp Transl Clin. 2017;3(1):2055217317690561.
