Treatment of Adults with Autism and Major Depressive Disorder Using Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation: An Open Label Pilot Study.
McLeod Frampton Gwynette, Danielle W Lowe, Erin A Henneberry and 8 others
PMID 31944611WHAT IT FOUND
Tolerability of brain stimulation was mixed, with withdrawals and a seizure from a device error.
Depression symptoms improved, while self-reported autism symptoms did not change.
Key findings
01Depression symptoms improved after rTMS in participants who completed treatment.
02Participants did not report changes in autism symptoms.
03Tolerability was mixed, with two withdrawals and one seizure caused by a device programming error.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for SLPs
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What it does not show
The study had no control group and no blinding, so improvement could be due to placebo or observer bias. Only ten participants were analysed, and some analyses used nine, seven or eight participants. Two participants withdrew and one had a seizure from a device programming error, so safety is not established. Autism outcomes relied on self-report and informant report, which are subjective. The sample was mostly male, with a median age of 25.5, and many had tried several antidepressants. Improvements in depression were not linked to informant reported autism behaviour changes.
The easy way to misread this
Do not conclude that rTMS is an established treatment for depression or autism symptoms in adults with autism. The study was open label and single arm, only ten participants were analysed, and one participant had a seizure caused by a device programming error.