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$3.4 Million For TMS Therapy Research

Exciting news is happening in the TMS therapy world. A researcher has been given over $3 million to produce personalized therapy for moderate mental deterioration. A scientist from the Department of Psychology at the University of Arizona will apply the funds to determine how we can stop thought deterioration while improving intellectual capacity in individuals that have moderate cognitive impairment.

Ying-hui Chou has expertise in TMS therapy and will use it alongside an MRI. The purpose is to find a regimen that is personalized for each person suffering from moderate mental deterioration. Chou, an assistant teacher of cognitive and neural systems, is also the administrator of the Brain Imaging and Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation Lab.

Chou says they would like to comprehend if it is possible to gain the flexibility of the mind. This professor feels that by aiming at the hippocampus and regulating the interaction among this and other areas of the mind, it would help tremendously.

Remembrance and education take place in the hippocampus. Any slide in function can cause links to other areas of the mind to be damaged. If there is a lack of these links, also referred to as hippocampus plasticity, there is a decrease in mental capacity. Brain cells will then be lost, which will result in immutable brain injury.

TMS therapy will be utilized to aim at the hippocampus. This treatment is capable of penetrating the pericranium which then allows an electrical flow the excite the mind.

TMS therapy was formed in 1985. It is a non-invasive procedure that requires no downtime. The FDA has approved TMS therapy for the use of many different ailments. People that suffer from depression have used it by itself when other treatments, such as medications and counseling, did not work. It can also be used in conjunction with medication and therapy. TMS treatments are also used for those that suffer from anxiety, PTSD, OCD, and migraines

Many are willing to try TMS therapy as there are not any unwanted side effects. With medications, there is a chance of weight gain, fatigue, diarrhea, tremors, and much more. Generally the only side effect may be a headache from where the coil was placed on the head.

Chou says that if they are ready to prove that TMS therapy is beneficial to MCI, the FDA may approve the treatment and protocol she is working on for neurodegenerative diseases.