Non-Drug Treatment Effective For Major Depression: Study Suggests
ScienceDaily (Nov. 23, 2007) — For the first time in a large-scale study, transcranial magnetic stimulation has been shown to be an effective, non-drug treatment for major depression. Current antidepressant therapies are not beneficial for at least a third of depressed individuals, leaving many with a lack of adequate treatment options.
Co-author Dr. Philip Janicak, professor of Psychiatry at Rush University Medical Center, says the treatment may be an option for patients with major depression who have not responded to conventional antidepressant medications.
Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS), a non-invasive technique that excites neurons in the brain by magnetic pulses introduced through the scalp, has previously been identified as a potential new treatment for depression but prior, smaller studies have shown conflicting results.
The authors present the results from the first large scale, multi-center, double-blind, sham-controlled study of TMS as a treatment for people with depression who had not responded to prior antidepressants and who were not taking antidepressant medications during the study. After four to six weeks of active or sham TMS, response and remission rates with active TMS were approximately twice those of sham.
This study was also associated with a low dropout rate, due to generally mild side effects, indicating that the treatment was well-tolerated by patients.
Dr. John P. O’Reardon, the corresponding author on this project and associate professor of Psychiatry at the University of Pennsylvania, explains, “These results indicate that TMS provides a novel and attractive treatment option for patients with major depression who have not responded to conventional antidepressant medications.”
Dr. John H. Krystal, editor of Biological Psychiatry, highlights the significance of this article’s findings. “This study provides new support for the efficacy of TMS as a ‘stand alone’ treatment for depression. This finding could be particularly important for patients who do not tolerate antidepressant medications, for whom they are not safe, or who have not benefited from other alternative treatments.”
O’Reardon adds, “As indicated by recent large scale, government-sponsored, studies of existing treatment options for major depression conducted by the National Institute of Health (the STAR-D reports), there is a great need to develop new effective treatments for patients, especially those not benefiting from first line interventions. The results of this study indicate that TMS offers new hope to patients in this regard.”
The article is “Efficacy and Safety of Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation in the Acute Treatment of Major Depression: A Multisite Randomized Controlled Trial” by John P. O’Reardon, H. Brent Solvason, Philip G. Janicak, Shirlene Sampson, Keith E. Isenberg, Ziad Nahas, William M. McDonald, David Avery, Paul B. Fitzgerald, Colleen Loo, Mark A. Demitrack, Mark S. George and Harold A. Sackeim.
The article appears in Biological Psychiatry, Volume 62, Issue 11 (December 1, 2007), published by Elsevier.
Adapted from materials provided by Rush University Medical Center.
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/11/071123200405.htm
My 2 Cents: I would give anything not to have to take any psychiatric meds, however, I am skeptical with this study. Perhaps due to the fact that I have spent too many years in a depressive stupor and although meds were at times very ineffective; they are basically ’saving’ my life now. (My opinion only on this).
Filed under: antidepressants, depression, mental health, mental illness, non-drug treatment
The study was not saying that TMS is better than anti-depressants for treating depression; it was saying that in patients who do not respond to anti-depressant treamtent, TMS can be effective. For many of these people, their only option is ECT (with its terrible side effects) or remaining in a major depression. Further study is of course needed, but it’s a good area for scientists to cover and very helpful to society.
TMS is not meant to replace anti-depressants, just to supplement it as a treatment for those who may be helped by it. Just as you have said medication may have saved your life, others feel that TMS may have saved theirs.
You made a valid point, especially where the option of ECT is concerned (you know my opinion there-see previous experiences/posts), and yes, a truly negative course of treatment.
For me, and all of my ill years, I am sticking to my daily regimen of the cocktail of meds prescribed. It’s working, and I’m not rocking the boat. I am delighted to hear of another source of treatment for others. If this works, then that will be at least another option to those who suffer from major depression.
Thanks for commenting.