Three decades of clinical research on repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) has yielded one clear treatment indication in psychiatry for major depression disorder (MDD). Although the ...clinical response equals the standard treatment algorithms, the effect sizes on the beneficial outcome remain rather modest. Over the last couple of years, to improve the efficacy in resistant depression, two new avenues have been developed: personalization and intensifying rTMS treatment. For the latter, we retrospectively compared accelerated high-frequency rTMS (arTMS) with accelerated intermittent theta burst stimulation (aiTBS) in the refractory depressed state. Although the clinical efficacy was not significantly different between both protocols, our observations substantiate the potential of the accelerated stimulation to shorten the treatment duration from the depressed state to the response state. Any time gain from the depressed state to the recovered state is in the patients' interest.
Highlights • We meta-analyzed 233 within-subject experiments investigating the effect of single-session DLPFC tDCS on cognitive outcomes. • No main effects of cathodal tDCS on reaction time, nor ...response accuracy were found. • No effects of stimulation parameters on cathodal tDCS effects on cognition were found. • Anodal tDCS significantly decreased response time in healthy participants, and increased response accuracy in neuropsychiatric patients. • In healthy participants, increased current densities/charges are associated to increased a-tDCS effects on response accuracy. • In neuropsychiatric patients, online task performance is associated to increased a-tDCS effects on accuracy, compared to offline task performance.
•rTMS can produce significant clinical improvement in various neurological and psychiatric disorders.•Updated guidelines on the therapeutic use of rTMS are presented, including 2014–2018 ...publications.•Higher evidence of efficacy is present in the areas of depression, pain, and postacute motor stroke.
A group of European experts reappraised the guidelines on the therapeutic efficacy of repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) previously published in 2014 Lefaucheur et al., Clin Neurophysiol 2014;125:2150–206. These updated recommendations take into account all rTMS publications, including data prior to 2014, as well as currently reviewed literature until the end of 2018. Level A evidence (definite efficacy) was reached for: high-frequency (HF) rTMS of the primary motor cortex (M1) contralateral to the painful side for neuropathic pain; HF-rTMS of the left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) using a figure-of-8 or a H1-coil for depression; low-frequency (LF) rTMS of contralesional M1 for hand motor recovery in the post-acute stage of stroke. Level B evidence (probable efficacy) was reached for: HF-rTMS of the left M1 or DLPFC for improving quality of life or pain, respectively, in fibromyalgia; HF-rTMS of bilateral M1 regions or the left DLPFC for improving motor impairment or depression, respectively, in Parkinson’s disease; HF-rTMS of ipsilesional M1 for promoting motor recovery at the post-acute stage of stroke; intermittent theta burst stimulation targeted to the leg motor cortex for lower limb spasticity in multiple sclerosis; HF-rTMS of the right DLPFC in posttraumatic stress disorder; LF-rTMS of the right inferior frontal gyrus in chronic post-stroke non-fluent aphasia; LF-rTMS of the right DLPFC in depression; and bihemispheric stimulation of the DLPFC combining right-sided LF-rTMS (or continuous theta burst stimulation) and left-sided HF-rTMS (or intermittent theta burst stimulation) in depression. Level A/B evidence is not reached concerning efficacy of rTMS in any other condition. The current recommendations are based on the differences reached in therapeutic efficacy of real vs. sham rTMS protocols, replicated in a sufficient number of independent studies. This does not mean that the benefit produced by rTMS inevitably reaches a level of clinical relevance.
Abstract Although accelerated repetitive Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (rTMS) paradigms and intermittent Theta-burst Stimulation (iTBS) may have the potency to result in superior clinical ...outcomes in Treatment Resistant Depression (TRD), accelerated iTBS treatment has not yet been studied. In this registered randomized double-blind sham-controlled crossover study, spread over four successive days, 50 TRD patients received 20 iTBS sessions applied to the left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC). The accelerated iTBS treatment procedure was found to be safe and resulted in immediate statistically significant decreases in depressive symptoms regardless of order/type of stimulation (real/sham). While only 28% of the patients showed a 50% reduction of their initial Hamilton Depression Rating Scale score at the end of the two-week procedure, this response rate increased to 38% when assessed two weeks after the end of the sham-controlled iTBS protocol, indicating delayed clinical effects. Importantly, 30% of the responders were considered in clinical remission. We found no demographic predictors for response. Our findings indicate that only four days of accelerated iTBS treatment applied to the left DLPFC in TRD may lead to meaningful clinical responses within two weeks post stimulation.
Depression and dementia are common incapacitating diseases in old age. The exact nature of the relationship between these conditions remains unclear, and multiple explanations have been suggested: ...depressive symptoms may be a risk factor for, a prodromal symptom of, or a coincidental finding in dementia. They may even be unrelated or only connected through common risk factors. Multiple studies so far have provided conflicting results.
To determine whether a systematic literature review can clarify the nature of the relation between depressive symptoms and dementia.
Using the Patient/Problem/Population, Intervention, Comparator, Outcome or PICO paradigm, a known framework for framing healthcare and evidence questions, we formulated the question "whether depressive symptoms in cognitively intact older adults are associated with a diagnosis of dementia later in life." We performed a systematic literature review of MEDLINE and PsycINFO in November 2018, looking for prospective cohort studies examining the aforementioned question.
We critically analyzed and listed 31 relevant papers out of 1,656 and grouped them according to the main hypothesis they support: depressive symptoms as a risk factor, not a risk factor, a prodromal symptom, both, or some specific other hypothesis. All but three studies used clinical diagnostic criteria for dementia alone (i.e., no biomarkers or autopsy confirmation). Several studies contain solid arguments for the hypotheses they support, yet they do not formally contradict other findings or suggested explanations and are heterogeneous.
The exact nature of the relationship between depressive symptoms and dementia in the elderly remains inconclusive, with multiple studies supporting both the risk factor and prodromal hypotheses. Some provide arguments for common risk factors. It seems unlikely that there is no connection at all. We conclude that at least in a significant part of the patients, depressive symptoms and dementia are related. This may be due to common risk factors and/or depressive symptoms being a prodromal symptom of dementia and/or depression being a risk factor for dementia. These causal associations possibly overlap in some patients. Further research is warranted to develop predictive biomarkers and to develop interventions that may attenuate the risk of "conversion" from depressive symptoms to dementia in the elderly.
Highlights • Numerous studies have shown that repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) produced significant clinical effects in patients with various neurological and psychiatric ...disorders. • This review presents guidelines on the therapeutic use of rTMS issued by a group of European experts. • Level A or B evidence supports an efficacy of rTMS protocols in depression, pain, motor stroke and schizophrenia.
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