When researchers conduct a study on a treatment for depression, how do they determine if the treatment was successful? Patients who struggle with depression may already know that success in treatment isn’t always simple to measure. For that reason, researchers have developed very specific tools and measurements to measure the…
How Stimulating the Brain Relieves Depression
July 20, 2018
Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) is a relatively new treatment for depression that has been able to help patients who have not gotten results from other forms of treatment by sending magnetic pulses to the brain. But how does TMS actually work? First, let’s look at what exactly TMS treatment targets…
The Discovery of TMS
July 12, 2018
Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) is one of the newest forms of treatment for depression. TMS is an especially exciting discovery because it has been shown to be effective in relieving depression even for patients with treatment-resistant depression. Yet if TMS is new, how was depression treated before TMS? And how…
Finding Relief from Treatment-Resistant Depression
June 27, 2018
In treatment for depression, the greater the number treatment failures, the lower the likelihood of a successful outcome to the next treatment option (1,2). For people with treatment resistant depression, this may come as no surprise. But what methods have been explored to address treatment-resistant depression? There are two main…
All About Insurance Coverage for TMS
June 5, 2018
Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS) was approved by the FDA in 2008 to combat the symptoms of treatment resistant depression. Since its approval, many more insurers have begun accepting TMS therapy as a covered procedure to treat depression that persists even after other treatment methods have been tried. Patients new…
Patients who struggle with treatment-resistant depression know how difficult it can be to find a treatment option that really works to relieve their symptoms. They have often tried medication and psychotherapy, but have gotten little to no results. Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) is a newer form of treatment, used for…
How Does TMS Compare with Medication Treatment?
April 26, 2018
Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) and antidepressant medication are both treatment options for depression that work in different ways. Antidepressant medication restores emotional balance to the chemicals in the brain, while transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) uses non-invasive magnetic pulses to stimulate the brain’s mood center. Studies have found similar success rates…