With more than $3.7 million in funding from the National Institute on Aging, Medical University of South Carolina neuropsychologist Andreana Benitez, Ph.D., of the Department of Neurology in the College of Medicine will lead a phase II clinical trial to determine the optimal dose of transcranial magnetic stimulation, or TMS, needed to improve symptoms for patients with depression and mild cognitive impairment, or MCI. In TMS, a magnet is placed against the patient’s head and stimulates the brain directly underneath.
Co-investigators include clinical neuropsychologist Stephanie Aghamoosa, Ph.D., of the College of Health Professions, as well as clinical psychologist Lisa McTeague, Ph.D., and psychiatrist and TMS pioneer Mark George, M.D., of the Brain Stimulation Lab within the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences. George’s work helped TMS to gain approval from the Food and Drug Administration for the treatment of major depressive disorder in 2008.
In this study, the MUSC team will be using intermittent theta-burst TMS delivered in an accelerated treatment course: Participants will choose six TMS treatment days within a two-week period, each lasting about 2 ½ hours. Such an accelerated treatment course could be less burdensome for older adults with MCI…
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