Project description:BackgroundNon-invasive brain stimulation (NIBS) techniques offer new therapeutic options for modifying pathological neuroplasticity and have been proven to be beneficial in the treatment of neuropsychiatric disorders.ObjectiveThis study aimed to investigate the role of NIBS in treating catatonia.Materials and methodsWe conducted a systematic search to identify meta-analyses or systematic reviews on electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) and studies on the effects of repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) and transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) on patients with catatonia from the PubMed, Web of Science, Embase, China National Knowledge Internet, Wanfang, and China Science and Technology Journal databases from inception until 31 July 2022. The methodological quality of the included studies was assessed with the AMSTAR2 or Joanna Briggs Institute Critical Appraisal tools. Paired t-tests and Wilcoxon signed-rank tests were used to compare changes in catatonia symptom scores after rTMS or tDCS.ResultsA total of 13 systematic reviews and one meta-analysis on ECT, two systematic reviews and 12 case reports on rTMS, and seven studies of 14 cases applying tDCS were identified. Systematic reviews of ECT consistently described improvement in catatonia symptoms across catatonia types and patient age groups. After treatment with rTMS (t = 4.489, p = 0.006) and tDCS (z = -3.065, p = 0.002), patients exhibited significant improvement.ConclusionECT, rTMS, and tDCS were effective in treating catatonia. Early intervention with NIBS techniques may help improve catatonia symptoms in patients with schizophrenia. It may be advantageous to use rTMS or tDCS to maintain this improvement. NIBS techniques may thus represent a promising treatment for catatonia, but additional high-quality randomized controlled trials are needed.
Project description:The new tendency in rehabilitation involves non-invasive tools that, if applied early after stroke, promote neurorecovery. Repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation and transcranial direct current stimulation may correct the disruption of cortical excitability and effectively contribute to the restoration of movement and speech. The present paper analyses the results of non-invasive brain stimulation (NIBS) trials, highlighting different aspects related to the repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation frequency, transcranial direct current stimulation polarity, the period and stimulation places in acute and subacute ischemic strokes. The risk of adverse events, the association with motor or language recovery specific training, and the cumulative positive effect evaluation are also discussed.
Project description:Cerebral circulation delivers the blood flow to the brain through a dedicated network of sanguine vessels. A healthy human brain can regulate cerebral blood flow (CBF) according to any physiological or pathological challenges. The brain is protected by its self-regulatory mechanisms, which are dependent on neuronal and support cellular populations, including endothelial ones, as well as metabolic, and even myogenic factors. Accumulating data suggest that "non-pharmacological" approaches might provide new opportunities for stroke therapy, such as electro-/acupuncture, hyperbaric oxygen therapy, hypothermia/cooling, photobiomodulation, therapeutic gases, transcranial direct current stimulations, or transcranial magnetic stimulations. We reviewed the recent data on the mechanisms and clinical implications of these non-pharmaceutical treatments. To present the state-of-the-art for currently available non-invasive, non-pharmacological-related interventions in acute ischemic stroke, we accomplished this synthetic and systematic literature review based on the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Principles Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA). The initial number of obtained articles was 313. After fulfilling the five steps in the filtering/selection methodology, 54 fully eligible papers were selected for synthetic review. We enhanced our documentation with other bibliographic resources connected to our subject, identified in the literature within a non-standardized search, to fill the knowledge gaps. Fifteen clinical trials were also identified. Non-invasive, non-pharmacological therapeutic/rehabilitative interventions for acute ischemic stroke are mainly holistic therapies. Therefore, most of them are not yet routinely used in clinical practice, despite some possible beneficial effects, which have yet to be supplementarily proven in more related studies. Moreover, few of the identified clinical trials are already completed and most do not have final results. This review synthesizes the current findings on acute ischemic stroke therapeutic/rehabilitative interventions, described as non-invasive and non-pharmacological.
Project description:ObjectiveNonsuicidal self-injury (NSSI), the deliberate, self-inflicted damage of bodily tissue without the intent to die, is associated with various negative outcomes. Although basic and epidemiologic research on NSSI has increased during the last 2 decades, literature on effective interventions targeting NSSI is still emerging. Here, we present a comprehensive, systematic review of existing psychological and pharmacological treatments designed specifically for NSSI, or including outcome assessments examining change in NSSI.MethodWe conducted a systematic search of PsycINFO, MEDLINE, and ERIC databases to retrieve relevant articles that met inclusion criteria; specifically, uncontrolled and controlled trials that 1) presented quantitative outcome data on NSSI, and 2) clearly differentiated NSSI from suicidal self-injury (SSI). Consistent with the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition, definition of NSSI, we excluded studies examining populations with developmental or intellectual disabilities, or with psychotic disorders.ResultsSeveral interventions appear to hold promise for reducing NSSI, including dialectical behaviour therapy, emotion regulation group therapy, manual-assisted cognitive therapy, dynamic deconstructive psychotherapy, atypical antipsychotics (aripiprazole), naltrexone, and selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (with or without cognitive-behavioural therapy). Nevertheless, there remains a paucity of well-controlled studies investigating treatment efficacy for NSSI.ConclusionsStructured psychotherapeutic approaches focusing on collaborative therapeutic relationships, motivation for change, and directly addressing NSSI behaviours seem to be most effective in reducing NSSI. Medications targeting the serotonergic, dopaminergic and opioid systems also have demonstrated some benefits. Future studies employing controlled designs as well as a clear delineation of NSSI and SSI will improve knowledge regarding treatment effects.
Project description:BackgroundFollowing traumatic brain injury (TBI) there is an increased prevalence of depression compared to the general population. It is unknown whether non-pharmacological interventions for depression are effective for people with TBI.ObjectivesTo investigate the effectiveness of non-pharmacological interventions for depression in adults and children with TBI at reducing the diagnosis and severity of symptoms of depression.Search methodsWe ran the most recent search on 11 February 2015. We searched the Cochrane Injuries Group Specialised Register, The Cochrane Library, MEDLINE (OvidSP), Embase (OvidSP), three other databases and clinical trials registers. Relevant conference proceedings and journals were handsearched, as were the reference lists of identified studies.Selection criteriaRandomised controlled trials (RCTs) of non-pharmacological interventions for depression in adults and children who had a TBI.Data collection and analysisTwo authors independently selected trials from the search results, then assessed risk of bias and extracted data from the included trials. The authors contacted trial investigators to obtain missing information. We rated the overall quality of the evidence of the primary outcomes using the GRADE approach.Main resultsSix studies met the inclusion criteria, with a total of 334 adult participants. We identified no studies that included children as participants. All studies were affected by high risk of bias due to a lack of blinding of participants and personnel; five studies were affected by high risk of bias for lack of blinding of outcome assessors. There was high or unclear risk of biases affecting some studies across all the Cochrane risk of bias measures.Three studies compared a psychological intervention (either cognitive behaviour therapy or mindfulness-based cognitive therapy) with a control intervention. Data regarding depression symptom outcome measures were combined in a meta-analysis, but did not find an effect in favour of treatment (SMD -0.14; 95% CI -0.47 to 0.19; Z = 0.83; P = 0.41). The other comparisons comprised of single studies of depression symptoms and compared; cognitive behaviour therapy versus supportive psychotherapy (SMD -0.09; 95% CI -0.65 to 0.48; Z = 0.30; P = 0.77); repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation plus tricyclic antidepressant (rTMS + TCA) versus tricyclic antidepressant alone (SMD -0.84; 95% CI -1.36 to -0.32; Z = 3;19, P = 0.001); and a supervised exercise program versus exercise as usual (SMD -0.43; 95% CI -0.88 to 0.03; Z = 1.84; P = 0.07). There was very-low quality evidence, small effect sizes and wide variability of results, suggesting that no comparisons showed a reliable effect for any intervention.Only one study mentioned minor, transient adverse events from repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation.Authors' conclusionsThe review did not find compelling evidence in favour of any intervention. Future studies should focus on participants with a diagnosed TBI and include only participants who have a diagnosis of depression, or who record scores above a clinical cutoff on a depression measure. There is a need for additional RCTs that include a comparison between an intervention and a control that replicates the effect of the attention given to participants during an active treatment.
Project description:Dysphagia is a serious stroke complication but lacks effective therapy. We investigated safety and preliminary efficacy of anodal transcranial direct current stimulation (atDCS) paired with swallowing exercises in improving post-stroke dysphagia from an acute unilateral hemispheric infarction (UHI). We conducted a double-blind, early phase-2 randomized controlled trial, in subjects (n = 42) with moderate-severe dysphagia [Penetration and Aspiration Scale (PAS) score ≥ 4], from an acute-subacute UHI. Subjects were randomized to Low-Dose, High-Dose atDCS or Sham stimulation for 5 consecutive days. Primary safety outcomes were incidence of seizures, neurological, motor, or swallowing function deterioration. Primary efficacy outcome was a change in PAS scores at day-5 of intervention. Main secondary outcome was dietary improvement at 1-month, assessed by Functional Oral Intake (FOIS) score. No differences in pre-defined safety outcomes or adjusted mean changes in PAS, FOIS scores, between groups, were observed. Post-hoc analysis demonstrated that 22 /24 subjects in the combined atDCS group had a clinically meaningful dietary improvement (FOIS score ≥ 5) compared to 8 /14 in Sham (p = 0.037, Fisher-exact). atDCS application in the acute-subacute stroke phase is safe but did not decrease risk of aspiration in this early phase trial. The observed dietary improvement is promising and merits further investigation.
Project description:BackgroundDepression occurs frequently in patients with coronary artery disease (CAD) and is associated with a poor prognosis.ObjectivesTo determine the effects of psychological and pharmacological interventions for depression in CAD patients with comorbid depression.Search strategyCENTRAL, DARE, HTA and EED on The Cochrane Library, MEDLINE, EMBASE, PsycINFO, CINAHL, ISRCTN Register and CardioSource Registry were searched. Reference lists of included randomised controlled trials (RCTs) were examined and primary authors contacted. No language restrictions were applied.Selection criteriaRCTs investigating psychological and pharmacological interventions for depression in adults with CAD and comorbid depression were included. Primary outcomes were depression, mortality and cardiac events. Secondary outcomes were healthcare costs and health-related quality of life (QoL).Data collection and analysisTwo reviewers independently examined the identified papers for inclusion and extracted data from included studies. Random effects model meta-analyses were performed to compute overall estimates of treatment outcomes.Main resultsThe database search identified 3,253 references. Sixteen trials fulfilled the inclusion criteria. Psychological interventions show a small beneficial effect on depression compared to usual care (range of SMD of depression scores across trials and time frames: -0.81;0.12). Based on one trial per outcome, no beneficial effects on mortality rates, cardiac events, cardiovascular hospitalizations and QoL were found, except for the psychosocial dimension of QoL. Furthermore, no differences on treatment outcomes were found between the varying psychological approaches. The review provides evidence of a small beneficial effect of pharmacological interventions with selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) compared to placebo on depression outcomes (pooled SMD of short term depression change scores: -0.24 [-0.38,-0.09]; pooled OR of short term depression remission: 1.80 [1.18,2.74]). Based on one to three trials per outcome, no beneficial effects regarding mortality, cardiac events and QoL were found. Hospitalization rates (pooled OR of three trials: 0.58 [0.39,0.85] and emergency room visits (OR of one trial: 0.58 [0.34,1.00]) were reduced in trials of pharmacological interventions compared to placebo. No evidence of a superior effect of Paroxetine (SSRI) versus Nortriptyline (TCA) regarding depression outcomes was found in one trial.Authors' conclusionsPsychological interventions and pharmacological interventions with SSRIs may have a small yet clinically meaningful effect on depression outcomes in CAD patients. No beneficial effects on the reduction of mortality rates and cardiac events were found. Overall, however, the evidence is sparse due to the low number of high quality trials per outcome and the heterogeneity of examined populations and interventions.
Project description:Introduction: Non-invasive brain stimulation (NIBS) techniques have been widely used for the purpose of improving clinical symptoms of schizophrenia. However, the ambiguous stimulation targets may limit the efficacy of NIBS for schizophrenia. Exploring effective stimulation targets may improve the clinical efficacy of NIBS in schizophrenia. Methods: We first conducted a neurosynth-based meta-analysis of 715 functional magnetic resonance imaging studies to identify schizophrenia-related brain regions as regions of interest. Then, we performed the resting-state functional connectivity analysis in 32 patients with first-episode schizophrenia to find brain surface regions correlated with the regions of interest in three pipelines. Finally, the 10-20 system coordinates corresponding to the brain surface regions were considered as potential targets for NIBS. Results: We identified several potential targets of NIBS, including the bilateral dorsal lateral prefrontal cortex, supplementary motor area, bilateral inferior parietal lobule, temporal pole, medial prefrontal cortex, precuneus, superior and middle temporal gyrus, and superior and middle occipital gyrus. Notably, the 10-20 system location of the bilateral dorsal lateral prefrontal cortex was posterior to F3 (F4), not F3 (F4). Conclusion: Conclusively, our findings suggested that the stimulation locations corresponding to these potential targets might help clinicians optimize the application of NIBS therapy in individuals with schizophrenia.
Project description:Stroke victims tend to prioritize speaking, writing, and walking as the three most important rehabilitation goals. Of note is that two of these goals involve communication. This underscores the significance of developing successful approaches to aphasia treatment for the several hundred thousand new aphasia patients each year and over 1 million stroke survivors with chronic aphasia in the U.S. alone. After several years of growth as a research tool, non-invasive brain stimulation (NBS) is gradually entering the arena of clinical aphasiology. In this review, we first examine the current state of knowledge of post-stroke language recovery including the contributions from the dominant and non-dominant hemispheres. Next, we briefly discuss the methods and the physiologic basis of the use of inhibitory and excitatory repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) and transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) as research tools in patients who experience post-stroke aphasia. Finally, we provide a critical review of the most influential evidence behind the potential use of these two brain stimulation methods as clinical rehabilitative tools.