Rapid Mood-Elevating Effects of Low Field Magnetic Stimulation in Depression.
Author: Rohan ML1, Yamamoto RT2, Ravichandran CT3, Cayetano KR2, Morales OG3, Olson DP2, Vitaliano G3, Paul SM3, Cohen BM3.
Affiliation:
1McLean Hospital and the Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Belmont, Massachusetts. Electronic address: mrohan@mclean.harvard.edu. 2McLean Hospital and the Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Belmont, Massachusetts. 3Departments of Neuroscience (Mind and Brain Institute), Psychiatry, and Pharmacology (SMP), Weill Cornell Medical College of Cornell University, New York, New York.
Conference/Journal: Biol Psychiatry.
Date published: 2013 Nov 12
Other:
Pages: S0006-3223(13)00981-5 , Special Notes: doi: 10.1016/j.biopsych.2013.10.024 , Word Count: 270
BACKGROUND:
We previously reported rapid mood elevation following an experimental magnetic resonance imaging procedure in depressed patients with bipolar disorder (BPD). This prompted the design, construction, and testing of a portable electromagnetic device that reproduces only the rapidly oscillating (1 kHz, <1 V/m) electromagnetic field of the experimental procedure, called low field magnetic stimulation (LFMS).
METHODS:
We used a randomized, double blind, sham controlled treatment protocol to study the effects of LFMS in a large group of stably medicated, depressed patients with either BPD (n = 41) or major depressive disorder (n = 22). Subjects received a single, 20-minute treatment. Change in mood was assessed immediately afterward using a visual analog scale (VAS), the 17-item Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HDRS-17), and the Positive and Negative Affect Schedule scales.
RESULTS:
Substantial improvement (>10% of baseline) in mood was observed following LFMS treatment relative to sham treatment for both diagnostic subgroups for our primary outcomes, the VAS and the HDRS-17. These differences were not statistically significant in primary analyses stratifying by diagnosis but were significant in secondary analyses combining data across the two diagnostic groups (p = .01 VAS, p = .02 HDRS-17). Rapid improvement in mood was also observed using the Positive and Negative Affect Schedule scales as secondary measures (positive affect scale p = .02 BPD, p = .002 combined group). A finite element method calculation indicates a broad penetration of the LFMS electric field throughout the cerebral cortex.
CONCLUSIONS:
Low field magnetic stimulation may produce rapid changes in mood using a previously unexplored range of electromagnetic fields.
© 2013 Society of Biological Psychiatry Published by Society of Biological Psychiatry All rights reserved.
KEYWORDS:
Bipolar depression, depression, electromagnetic field, field, rapid antidepressant, therapy
PMID: 24331545
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