About transcranial magnetic stimulation therapy

  Recently, there are often inquiries about transcranial magnetic stimulation therapy, and I think many people do not know much about this treatment method, or have many misconceptions. There are also many advertisements of transcranial magnetic stimulation devices on the market, which advertise how good the treatment effect is, making people dazzled. Therefore, we would like to popularize some principles of the treatment and provide some reference for your choice.  Transcranial magnetic stimulation treatment, abbreviated as TMS (transcranial magnetic stimulation treatment), is an internationally recognized physiotherapy method for depression, anxiety and other psychiatric disorders. It does have therapeutic effects on depression, anxiety and other psychiatric disorders, but there are several prerequisites or precautions.  First of all, the principle of transcranial magnetic stimulation therapy is to stimulate specific cortical areas of the brain through a high-intensity magnetic field, such as the ability to affect the release or inhibition of neurotransmitters (such as pentazocine, norepinephrine, etc.), so as to achieve the effect of treating depression and anxiety. Magnetic field strength requirements are very high, generally need to reach about 3T, otherwise it is difficult to cast through the skull, there is no therapeutic effect, and to achieve such requirements of the instrument is more expensive, such as our hospital equipment is about more than 100,000, some reach hundreds of thousands. Therefore, the market advertising claims “transcranial magnetic stimulation therapy instrument”, and the price is only a few hundred, thousands of fast money whether the instrument can meet the requirements of the magnetic field is difficult to guarantee, the condition of inferior instruments may also have a bad effect on the body due to electromagnetic radiation.  Secondly, transcranial magnetic stimulation therapy or as one of the treatment methods combined with regular medication and psychotherapy, the effect of single transcranial magnetic stimulation therapy may be limited.  Finally, transcranial magnetic stimulation therapy requires a certain number of treatments and courses, and a single treatment may not be effective, generally a course of treatment from 10 to 30 times, different medical units have different settings, but in any case, it may take more than ten to dozens of consecutive treatments to produce results.  However, transcranial magnetic stimulation is not a one-size-fits-all treatment and is not suitable for everyone. Just like medication regimens, some people may not be personally sensitive to the treatment method, so even if the treatment time is extended, it may not be effective and adjustments to the treatment regimen need to be considered.