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Updated: Jun 11, 2025
MRI-guided dmPFC-rTMS as a Treatment for Treatment-resistant Major Depressive Disorder
Published on: August 11, 2015
Repetitive Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation for the Treatment of Depression in a Real-World Setting: Findings from a
Tiziano Prodi1, Gabriele Pezzullo1, Kevin La Monica1
1Department of Psychiatry, Department of Biomedical and Clinical Sciences "Luigi Sacco", University of Milan, ASST Fatebenefratelli-Sacco, 20157 Milan, Italy.
Background/Objectives:
In the past two decades, significant advancements in neuromodulation techniques have occurred, such as transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) for treatment-resistant depression (TRD). According to the assumption that repeated stimulation within a condensed timeframe can yield sustained efficacy, an accelerated protocol may be more effective in reducing time to response. With those premises, this study aimed to evaluate a sample of TRD patients treated with standard repetitive TMS (rTMS) and accelerated rTMS (arTMS).
Methods:
Nine subjects were treated with standard rTMS and 19 with arTMS. Psychometric assessment was made at the baseline and one week, one month, and three months after the treatment. A linear mixed-effect regression was performed along with other appropriate statistical analyses.
Results:
A significant improvement over time was observed for both depressive and cognitive symptoms. Moreover, considering the reduction in the Montgomery-Asberg Depression Rating Scale scores, a better treatment response was observed in subjects treated with arTMS (p < 0.05).
Conclusions:
Our findings showed a significant difference between the two protocols in terms of clinical response. Although further studies are needed to confirm the superiority of arTMS, the better cost-effectiveness of this technique should be considered.
