Posted by SLS on August 4, 2006, at 7:31:32
In reply to Re: Transmagnetic stimulation - need advice » SLS, posted by fuchsia on August 4, 2006, at 7:08:40
> > If I can get it paid for, I intend to try it. They are continually tweaking the settings on the machine to optimize the frequency, flux, coil placement, etc.
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> They didn't pay me to be in the trial but the active treatment I was supposed to be getting was, according to them, proven to have some success rate.
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> I know there was going to be a future trial where some of the participants would have a fish oil capsule (or was it vitamin E?) stuck on their head. Now I can't for the life of me remember what the design of that trial was but it made sense at the time. The capsule was just going to be a space occupier it wasn't anything spooky.
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> > I really can't disclose names, but one of the primary investigators of rTMS counselled a former patient who is bipolar and TRD stage 5 that it was not worth for her to try it. This was quite awhile ago, though.
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> Can you tell me, in a bipolar patient, does a 'lack of response' include an unhelpful response, as in the induction of mania? This has always confused me.Hmm.
This person had an ambiguous history of hypomania as an adolescent. As an adult, she experienced no mania at all, and cycled between severe major depressive episodes and dysthymia. I guess she would qualify as double depression along a bipolar spectrum. Knowing her history, I don't think her doctor was worried about a switch into mania. I think his comments were interpreted by her to mean that the rTMS treatments would not have any effect on her mood at all.Interestingly, if the magnetic coil is placed on the wrong side of the head or the frequency set improperly, it can actually make depression worse and perhaps even induce mania. There is still a lot of work yet to be done with this treatment - I hope.
- Scott
poster:SLS
thread:673494
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20060802/msgs/673578.html