A new national clinical trial is offering hope to people suffering from treatment-resistant depression, and could one day replace electroconvulsive therapy as the gold standard.
Researchers at Lawson Health Research Institute are conducting the first randomized controlled trial to examine the efficacy of magnetic seizure therapy (MST), which uses a focused magnetic field as opposed to electricity to treat depression stemming from bipolar disorder.
“Magnetic seizure therapy has already been shown as a promising treatment for major depressive disorder or unipolar depression,” said Dr. Amer Burhan, Lawson researcher and neuropsychiatrist at St. Joseph’s Health Care London. “For the first time, we’re studying how effective the treatment is for depression as a result of bipolar disorder and whether it can reduce the risk of cognitive side effects associated with electroconvulsive therapy.”
Patients with this severe form of depression do not respond to traditional therapies like medication. Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) has been the go-to treatment for this crippling mental illness for years. It uses an electric field to induce a seizure that provides a therapeutic benefit, but many patients opt out due to stigma surrounding the therapy and possible cognitive side effects like disorientation and amnesia.
According to Burhan, MST reduces the risk of cognitive side effects as it is a more focused therapy.
“Magnetic seizure therapy holds promise of one day replacing electroconvulsive therapy as the gold standard for treatment-resistant depression,” said Burhan.
The clinical trial is being offered to eligible patients at Parkwood Institute. Some study participants will receive MST, while others will get ECT. Those receiving the new treatment will be put under anesthesia in 12 to 20 sessions. Sessions will last 10 to 15 minutes each with 60 to 90 minutes of recovery time.
The Centre for Addiction and Mental Health in Toronto and the University of British Columbia Hospital in Vancouver will also be offering the clinical trials.