Brain monoaminergic neurotransmission is involved in the pathophysiology of various psychiatric disorders including depression. Reliable indicators of central monoaminergic activity might be helpful to specifically identify and differentiate dysfunctions in individual patients in order to selectively adjust medication and predict clinical response. In patients with depression, predictors of treatment response to serotonergic versus non-serotonergic (e.g., noradrenergic) antidepressants could be of considerable clinical relevance by avoiding unfavorable factors such as a prolonged duration of the disorder, risk of suicidality and therapy-resistance. Consequently, these tools might help to decrease direct and indirect costs of treatment. The loudness dependence of the N1/P2 component of auditory evoked potentials (LD) has been proposed as a noninvasive neurophysiological indicator of central serotonergic function. This review focuses on recent studies providing evidence for the validity of LD as an indirect serotonergic marker and highlights data on the clinical application in terms of prediction of treatment response in patients with depression.
Background:The effects of cerebellar low-frequency repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) in individuals suffering from essential tremor (ET) are controversial.
Aim of The Work:To evaluate repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) can help people with essential tremors. Patients and Methods: This case study involved 30 subjects divided into an active group of 15 ET patients and a sham group of another 15 ET patients who were treated in tertiary care at Al-Hussein and Sayed Galal Hospitals, Al-Azhar University. The Fahn, Tolosa, Marin (FTM) Tremor Rating Scale has been used to evaluate and scale tremors at baseline, as well as a day, one month, two months, and three months following the (sham and active) repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation sessions.
Results:The results of this study showed that repeated active rTMS over the cerebellum enhanced total and specific subcores (tremor, drawing, and functional disability).The influence lasted for 3 months following the final session. The sham group's total and specific FTM subcores (tremor, drawing, functional disability) showed no significant differences. Conclusion: For patients suffering from severe essential tremor, cerebellar rTMS can be an effective therapy choice.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.