Grant: Project Grant

The goal of this project is to determine whether a new kind of non-invasive brain stimulation therapy with trans-cranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) is effective in the treatment of obsessive-compulsive disorder. Currently, TMS therapy consists of a sequence of pre-determined stimulation pulses and the same sequence is applied to every patient during every treatment session. However, as we found out in our previous research with healthy study participants, the effectiveness of TMS pulses depends on which part of the individual brain oscillation cycle the pulses are applied. Specifically, it is the negative peak of the oscillation, recorded from the region of the brain that is typically stimulated for the treatment of OCD, that is results in the strongest responses to TMS. We have previously built a system, that is able to synchronize the stimulation with the relevant individual ongoing EEG oscillations. In this project, we will conduct a pilot study to validate the effectiveness of this method and to comparing the effect of the new therapy with placebo. The results of this pilot study will be the foundation of a larger scale trial on the path to establishing this new approach as a therapy in OCD.