[Treating depression with repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS): Which repayment of a leading activity in psychiatry?]

Acceptability, attitudes and knowledge towards Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS) among psychiatrists in France

BACKGROUND

Non-invasive brain stimulation techniques are becoming a part of psychiatrists' therapeutic arsenal. Proof of TMS effectiveness and its indications are becoming clearer. While international recommendations exist, and many countries have already recognized the use of these techniques, the French situation is peculiar since no recommendation has been published by the High Authority of Health. Consequently, those techniques are not reimbursed by the healthcare service, few practitioners are trained, some are criticized for using it, and practices remain very heterogeneous. It is therefore important to investigate what slows down the development of these techniques. The objective of this study was to determine the acceptability of TMS by psychiatrists and to analyze the factors influencing it.

METHOD

A sample of psychiatrists was recruited in order to complete an online quantitative acceptability study using a four variable domain model (utility, intention of use, facility, risk) allowing an acceptability score calculation.

RESULT

Four hundreds and seventy-six observations were included in the analysis. Regarding the main objective, the overall TMS acceptability score was high for 47.2% of psychiatrists, average for 40.6% and low for 12.1% of them. The main factors influencing it were theoretical orientation (psychoanalytic vs neurobiological) and training level (only one in three psychiatrists acknowledge having been trained in this technique).

DISCUSSION

The majority of practitioners consider TMS to be a credible alternative to current therapies, especially for depressive disorders. Yet psychiatrists are uninformed and poorly trained in these techniques and report very clearly a desire for more training and information. Our study highlights a significant lack of training that negatively impacts the accessibility of these techniques.

Hospital production cost of transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) in the treatment of depression

OBJECTIVES

Due to its ease of use, tolerance, and cost of acquisition, transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) could constitute a credible therapeutic option for non-resistant depression in primary care, when combined with drug management. This indication has yet to receive official recognition in France. The objective of this study is to evaluate the production cost of tDCS for the treatment of depression in hospitals, under realistic conditions.

METHODS

The methodology adopted is based on cost accounting and was validated by a multidisciplinary working group. It includes equipment, staff, and structural costs to obtain the most realistic estimate possible. We first estimated the cost of producing a tDCS session, based on our annual activity objective, and then estimated the cost of a 15-session treatment program. This was followed up with a sensitivity analysis applying appropriate parameters.

RESULTS

The hospital production cost of a tDCS depression treatment program for a single patient was estimated at €1555.60 euros: €99 in equipment costs, €1076.95 in staff costs, and €379.65 in structural costs.

CONCLUSION

This cost analysis should make it possible to draw up pricing proposals in compliance with regulations and health policy choices and to develop health-economic studies. This would ultimately lead to official recognition of tDCS treatment for depression in France and pave the way for studying various scenarios of coverage by the French national health insurance system.

The Differential Effects of Repetitive Magnetic Stimulation in an In Vitro Neuronal Model of Ischemia/Reperfusion Injury

Repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) is a non-invasive therapy that has been implicated in treatment of serious neurological disorders. However, the neurobiological mechanisms underlying the effects of rTMS remain unclear. Therefore, this study examined the differential effects of repetitive magnetic stimulation (rMS) in an in vitro neuronal model of ischemia/reperfusion (I/R) injury, depending on low and high frequency. Neuro-2a cells were differentiated with retinoic acid and established for in vitro neuronal model of I/R injury under a subsequent 3 h of oxygen and glucose deprivation/reoxygenation (OGD/R) condition. After the I/R injury, the differentiated neuronal cells were stimulated with rMS on day 1 and randomly divided into three groups: OGD/R+sham, OGD/R+low-frequency, and OGD/R+high-frequency groups. High-frequency rMS increases cell proliferation through activation of extracellular signal-regulated kinases and AKT-signaling pathway and inhibits apoptosis in OGD/R-injured cells. Furthermore, high-frequency rMS increases Ca²⁺–calmodulin-dependent protein kinase II (CaMKII)-cAMP-response element binding protein (CREB) signaling pathway, further leading to alternation of brain-derived neurotrophic factor expression and synaptic plasticity in OGD/R injured cells. These results verified the neurobiological mechanisms of frequency-dependent rMS in I/R injury-treated neuronal cells. These mechanisms will help develop more powerful and credible rTMS stimulation treatment protocols.