In a double-blind controlled study, high doses of magnetic brain stimulation, given on an accelerated timeline and individually targeted, caused remission in 79% of trial participants with severe depression.
The transcranial magnetic stimulation treatment currently approved by the Food and Drug Administration requires six weeks of once-daily sessions. Only about half of patients who undergo the treatment improve, and only about a third experience remission from depression
Am I misunderstanding, or is the general effectiveness of the treatment way overstated in the headline?
What you quoted is the current protocol approved by the FDA. The study results are related to an accelerated treatment timeline, with many TMS treatments per day for a few days rather than the current protocol of one treatment per day for weeks. This is just one of several studies now indicating this accelerated treatment timeline is more effective at reducing symptoms of depression than the current protocol
