Transcranial magnetic stimulation during pregnancy.

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Psychiatry
• Clinical Medicine

Background:

• Depression during pregnancy poses risks to both mother and child.
• Treatment-resistant depression in pregnancy requires safe and effective therapeutic options.
• Repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) is a non-invasive neuromodulation technique.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the safety and effectiveness of high-frequency rTMS for treating depression in pregnant patients.
• To assess the antidepressant effects of rTMS in a cohort of depressed pregnant individuals.

Main Methods:

• Thirty pregnant patients with depression received 18 sessions of high-frequency rTMS over the left prefrontal cortex.
• Treatment involved 25-Hz stimulation at 100% motor threshold, 1,000 pulses per session, for 3 weeks.
• Depression severity was measured using the 17-item Hamilton depression rating scale (HAMD) before and after treatment.

Main Results:

• The mean HAMD score significantly decreased from 26.77 to 13.03 (p < 0.001) after rTMS treatment.
• 41.4% of patients showed a >50% reduction in HAMD scores (response), and 20.7% achieved remission (HAMD < 8).
• rTMS was well-tolerated with no significant adverse effects reported during the study period.

Conclusions:

• High-frequency rTMS is a statistically and clinically effective treatment for pregnant patients with treatment-resistant depression.
• The findings support the use of rTMS as a safe antidepressant intervention during pregnancy.
• This study adds to the evidence base for rTMS in managing depression in pregnancy.