Marina O. Rosa

Transcranial magnetic stimulation accelerates the antidepressant effect of amitriptyline in severe depression: A double-blind placebo-controlled study

BACKGROUND Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) is a noninvasive method to stimulate the cortex, and the treatment of depression is one of its potential therapeutic applications. Three recent meta analyses strongly suggest its benefits in the treatment of depression. The present study investigates whether repetitive TMS (rTMS) accelerates the onset of action and increases the therapeutic effects of amitriptyline. METHODS Forty-six outpatients meeting DSM-IV criteria for nonpsychotic depressive episode were randomly assigned to receive rTMS (n = 22) or sham repetitive TMS (sham) (n = 24) during 4 weeks over dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) in this double-blind controlled trial. All patients were concomitantly taking amitriptyline (mean dose 110 mg/d). The rTMS group received 20 sessions (5 sections per week) of 5 Hz rTMS (120% of motor threshold and 1250 pulses per session). Sham stimulation followed the same schedule, however, using a sham coil. The efficacy variables were the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale-17 items (HAM-D/17), the Montgomery-Asberg Depression Rating Scale (MADRS), a Visual Analogue Scale (VAS), and the Clinical Global Impression (CGI). Tolerability was assessed by clinical examination and a safety screening of TMS side effects. RESULTS Repetitive TMS had a significantly faster response to amitriptyline. There was a significant decrease in HAM-D/17 scores, already after the first week of treatment (p < .001 compared with baseline and p < .001 compared with sham). The decrease in HAM-D/17 scores in the rTMS group was significantly superior compared with the sham group throughout the study (p < .001 at fourth week). CONCLUSIONS Repetitive TMS at 5 Hz accelerated the onset of action and augmented the response to amitriptyline.

Effect of repetitive TMS and fluoxetine on cognitive function in patients with parkinson's disease and concurrent depression

Previous studies show that cognitive functions are more impaired in patients with Parkinsons disease (PD) and depression than in nondepressed PD patients. We compared the cognitive effects of two types of antidepressant treatments in PD patients: fluoxetine (20 mg/day) versus repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS, 15 Hz, 110% above motor threshold, 10 daily sessions) of the left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex. Twenty‐five patients with PD and depression were randomly assigned either to Group 1 (active rTMS and placebo medication) or to Group 2 (sham rTMS and fluoxetine). A neuropsychological battery was assessed by a rater blind to treatment arm at baseline and 2 and 8 weeks after treatment. Patients in both groups had a significant improvement of Stroop (colored words and interference card) and Hooper and Wisconsin (perseverative errors) test performances after both treatments. Furthermore, there were no adverse effects after either rTMS or fluoxetine in any neuropsychological test of the cognitive test battery. The results show that rTMS could improve some aspects of cognition in PD patients similar to that of fluoxetine. The mechanisms for this cognitive improvement are unclear, but it is in the context of mood improvement.

Comparison of repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation and electroconvulsive therapy in unipolar non-psychotic refractory depression: a randomized, single-blind study

Repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) can induce significant antidepressant effects and, for some patients, might be an alternative to electroconvulsive therapy (ECT). The results of studies comparing the efficacy of rTMS and ECT are mixed and, therefore, comparison of these two therapies needs to be further explored. Forty-two patients aged between 18 and 65 yr, referred to ECT due to unipolar non-psychotic depression refractoriness entered the trial. They were randomly assigned to receive either rTMS or ECT. Depressive symptom changes were blindly measured by Hamilton Depression Rating Scale, Visual Analogue Scale and Clinical Global Impression at baseline, after 2 wk and after 4 wk of treatment. There was no difference in the antidepressant efficacy of ECT and rTMS. Response rates were relatively low in both groups (40% and 50% respectively), with no significant difference between them (p=0.55). Remission rates were also low for both groups (20% and 10% respectively), also with no significant difference (p=0.631). There was no significant difference in the neuropsychological test performance after either one of these therapies. Both treatments were associated with a degree of improvement in refractory depression and therefore add to the literature that rTMS can be an effective option to ECT as it is a less costly treatment and is not associated with anaesthetic and other ECT risks.

Open trial on the efficacy of right unilateral electroconvulsive therapy with titration and high charge.

The use of right unilateral electrode placement for electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) is one of the most important developments on the technique because it is considered to spare cognition. Nevertheless, the best way to determine the charge to be given to the individual patient is still controversial. We present an open study on the use of right unilateral ECT using the technique of method of limits and giving treatments with 6 times the seizure threshold. Of 30 patients, there was a response/remission rate of 53.33%, as measured by the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale, after a mean of 8 sessions. Half of the nonresponders (n = 7) received subsequent bilateral ECT, with improvement on 4. The data suggest that it is a good practice to start the treatment with unilateral ECT and, if no response is achieved, to switch to bilateral placement.

Cardiovascular effects of anesthesia in ECT: a randomized, double-blind comparison of etomidate, propofol, and thiopental.

Cardiovascular alterations during electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) are a major concern for this treatment. Although several studies have been performed to compare the effects of anesthetics on these alterations, the results are mixed and doubt still exists regarding the choice of the best drug. We conducted a randomized, double-blind clinical trial to compare the effects of 3 anesthetics used in ECT: etomidate, propofol, and thiopental. Patients (N = 30) were randomized to receive one of these drugs as the anesthetic for the ECT procedure. Cardiovascular evaluation consisted of the measurement of blood systolic and diastolic pressure and heart rate before and immediately after the end of the seizure for each patient during a course of ECT. The results showed that etomidate, propofol, and thiopental were associated with similar cardiovascular effects.

Ultrabrief (0.3 ms) or Brief (0.5 ms) Pulses for Right Unilateral Electroconvulsive Therapy Is There a Difference in Seizure Thresholds

Objectives To compare the minimum charge to elicit a seizure using 2 different pulse widths, the brief pulse (0.5 milliseconds [ms]) and the ultrabrief pulse (0.3 ms). Methods We compared retrospectively the last 30 patients in our ECT unit whose seizure thresholds were titrated using a pulse width of 0.5 ms to the last 30 patients whose seizure thresholds were titrated using a pulse width of 0.3 ms. The former were regular clinical patients, and the latter were participating in a clinical trial on the use of ultrabrief pulse treatment. All titrations were performed with right unilateral electrode positioning. Most patients continued to use psychotropic medications. Results Initial seizure threshold (as measured in millicoulombs [mC]) for the brief pulse group (0.5 ms) was 16 (n = 1); 32 (n = 21), and 64 (n = 8); whereas for the ultrabrief pulse group (0.3 ms), it was 9.2 (n = 3), 38.4 (n = 21), 19.2 (n = 3), 76.8 (n = 2), and 307.2 (n = 1). Excluding the outlier, there was no statistical difference between mean seizure thresholds. Conclusions If we exclude the outlier from the ultrabrief group (seizure threshold [ST], 307 mC), we can observe that most of the patients in both groups had an ST between 30 and 40 mC. No patient in the brief pulse group showed a lower ST than 16 mC, probably because this was the first step of titration for this group. The data suggest that the difference between 0.3 and 0.5 ms may not be big, although randomized prospective studies with a more precise and similar steps used for titration are needed. Clinical efficacy was not compared in the present study.

Simultaneous low (1 Hz)- and high (10 Hz)-frequency bilateral transcranial magnetic stimulation in a patient with severe depression and crohn disease.

Abstract We present a case report in which electroconvulsive therapy had a good effect for the treatment of depression in association with Crohn disease, but adverse effects limited its use. Repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation was tried both in a conventional way (high frequency over the left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex) and in a bilateral sequential way (high frequency in the same region followed in the same session by low frequency on the right side). Finally, bilateral simultaneous stimulation (high frequency over the left and low frequency over the right side) was tried and resulted in a response similar to that of electroconvulsive therapy.

Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation in Schizophrenia

Repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) has proven useful for the study and treatment of schizophrenic symptoms. This chapter describes the clinical studies with rTMS in schizophrenia id