Acute effects of repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation on attentional control are related to antidepressant outcomes (original) (raw)

2009, Journal of psychiatry & neuroscience : JPN

Repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) applied over the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) is a new treatment procedure that holds promise of more insight into the pathophysiology of depression because the DLPFC may play an important role in the interplay between emotional and attentional information processing. We sought to investigate whether acute neurocognitive effects of rTMS are related to antidepressant outcomes. Between January 2005 and May 2007, we examined the effects of a single session compared with 2 weeks of rTMS over the left DLPFC on cognition and mood in therapy-resistant patients with depression. We used a crossover placebo-controlled double-blind design and differentiated rTMS treatment responders and nonresponders. We used a task-switching paradigm to measure cognitive function. After 2 weeks of high-frequency rTMS over the left DLPFC, depressive symptoms improved in more than half (53%) of our therapy-resistant population. After a single session...