The effects of theta burst stimulation (TBS) targeting the prefrontal cortex on executive functioning: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

Theta burst stimulation (TBS) is a highly efficient repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) variant employed in experimental and clinical treatment paradigms. Despite widespread usage of TBS targeting the prefrontal cortex (PFC), there has been no systematic review of the evidence linking TBS protocols to changes in task performance on common measures of prefrontal function in general, and executive functions specifically. A systematic review of the literature was conducted using PsycINFO, PubMed, Web of Science and Scopus databases to identify articles examining the effects of TBS targeting the PFC on executive function task performance. Both the up-regulating (intermittent theta burst stimulation; iTBS) and down-regulating (continuous theta burst stimulation; cTBS) variants of TBS were considered. 32 (29 cTBS; 8 iTBS) studies met the inclusion criteria. Participants (n = 759; 51.41% female) were primarily young adults (M