TMS and its applications in neuropsychiatry and clinical neuroscience

The main and best evidence-based indication to date to apply repetitive Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (rTMS) in psychiatric disorders is major depression. Nevertheless, given that the high occurrence of major depressive disorders poses a major challenge for health systems worldwide, there is an urgent need for improving the clinical efficacy of the existing approved rTMS applications and promoting the development of effective rTMS treatment approaches. Besides providing an overview of the current evidence here, we discuss novel stimulation patterns, targets, and coils; combined treatments and maintenance; personalization and stratification of rTMS parameters; and the treatment of subpopulations.

The Challenge of Antidepressant Therapeutics in Alzheimer's Disease

The link between depression and Alzheimer's disease (AD) is controversial, because it is not clear if depression is an independent risk factor for the disease or a prodromal symptom in the older population. Cerebral amyloid-\u3b2 (A\u3b2) peptide deposition is associated with both cognitive symptoms and neuropsychiatric symptoms (NPS), which may be a biological mechanism of compensation. Despite the widespread use of antidepressant therapeutics (30-50% of patients with AD/dementia are on antidepressants), there is mixed evidence regarding the benefits from their use in AD depression. Monoaminergic antidepressant drugs have shown only modest or no clinical benefits. Therefore, it is important to understand the reason of this drug-resistance and the relationship between antidepressant drugs and the A\u3b2 peptide. The goal of the present review is to highlight the etiology of depression in patients affected by AD in comparison to depressive disorders without AD, and to speculate on more appropriate and alternative therapeutics