Electromagnetic Stimulation

JULY 9, 2007

"Depression treatable by electromagnetic therapy"
– The Raw Story

Patients suffering from depression may find relief from treatments using electromagnetic stimulation, offering a possible alternative to mood-altering medications, a new study found.

The research, which was released on Monday, tested 190 patients who had previously failed to respond to antidepressant drugs.

Patients were given at least three weeks of magnetic stimulation.

Scientists found that the treatment led to remissions for 14 percent of them, and that most remained in remission for several months.

The treatment, known as repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) offers future hope of a non-drug treatment for depression sufferers, although researchers said additional studies are needed.

“This study should help settle the debate about whether rTMS works for depression,” said Mark George of the Medical University of South Carolina in Charleston, who led the research team.

“We can now follow up clues suggesting ways to improve its effectiveness, and hopefully further develop a potential new class of stimulation treatments for other brain disorders.”

Read the rest here:
Depression ‘treatable by electromagnetic therapy’ – The Raw Story