TMS-POD group

The TMS-POD group aims to evaluate the use of rTMS as a clinical therapy for psychiatric and neurological illnesses, especially depression. We are approaching this topic from physiological and clinical perspectives, with emphasis on directional and rate-dependent effects of TMS. Our current projects include:

• animal studies showing effects of the magnetic field in TMS and cellular physiology, perhaps leading to models
• clinical studies involving various measures of depression and melancholia
• systematic evaluation of coil overheating provoked shutdown (COPS) as a limiting factor in treatment parameters. Avoiding COPS enables more stimulation to be delivered in a treatment session.
• SPECT imaging of the metabolic effects of 0.3 Hz TMS (here's a QuickTime movie (330k) or an animated GIF (153k; Netscape 2+ required) of preliminary data).
• Comparing the effects of chronic ECT and rTMS on modulating gene expression in cortical neurons.
• Modelling and in vivo approaches to understanding the interaction of rTMS with cortical activity.