NCT04842929

Brief Summary

Major depressive disorder (MDD) is a common psychiatric condition, mostly treated with antidepressant drugs, which are limited for issues such as refractoriness, adverse effects and drug interactions, especially in the elderly population. In this context, the investigators investigate a non-pharmacological treatment known as recurrent transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) with the theta-burst stimulation (TBS) method for the treatment of geriatric depression. This treatment modality has almost no adverse effects and avoids the risk associated with polypharmacy, providing an interesting alternative to antidepressant treatments. Our aim is to evaluate TBS efficacy in the treatment of geriatric depression in a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial.

Trial Health

87
On Track

Trial Health Score

Automated assessment based on enrollment pace, timeline, and geographic reach

Enrollment
108

participants targeted

Target at P50-P75 for not_applicable major-depressive-disorder

Timeline
Completed

Started Jan 2019

Longer than P75 for not_applicable major-depressive-disorder

Geographic Reach
1 country

1 active site

Status
completed

Health score is calculated from publicly available data and should be used for screening purposes only.

Trial Relationships

Click on a node to explore related trials.

Study Timeline

Key milestones and dates

Study Start

First participant enrolled

January 16, 2019

Completed
2 years until next milestone

First Submitted

Initial submission to the registry

January 20, 2021

Completed
3 months until next milestone

First Posted

Study publicly available on registry

April 13, 2021

Completed
1.9 years until next milestone

Primary Completion

Last participant's last visit for primary outcome

March 20, 2023

Completed
Same day until next milestone

Study Completion

Last participant's last visit for all outcomes

March 20, 2023

Completed
Last Updated

September 29, 2025

Status Verified

September 1, 2025

Enrollment Period

4.2 years

First QC Date

January 20, 2021

Last Update Submit

September 23, 2025

Conditions

Keywords

major depressive disordergeriatric depressionrepetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS)theta-burst stimulation (TBS)elderly

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (1)

  • Changes in Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression, 17 items (HDRS-17)

    Continuous measure (score changes).

    Weeks 0 and 6

Secondary Outcomes (11)

  • Change in HDRS-17

    Weeks 1, 2, 4, 6, 8, 12

  • Change in Montgomery-Asberg Depression Rating Scale (MADRS)

    Weeks 1, 2, 4, 6, 8, 12

  • Change in Global Clinical Impression Scale (CGI)

    Weeks 1, 2, 4, 6, 8, 12

  • Change in Cumulative Illness Rating Scale (CIRS)

    Weeks 1, 2, 4, 6, 8, 12

  • Change in Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS)

    Weeks 1, 2, 4, 6, 8, 12

  • +6 more secondary outcomes

Other Outcomes (2)

  • Conditioned pain modulation

    Week 0 and 4

  • Actigraphy

    1 week before treatment up to 4 weeks after finishing study

Study Arms (2)

Active Stimulation

ACTIVE COMPARATOR

Active Comparator: Active stimulation with pulses emitted according to intervention description

Device: Transcranial magnetic stimulation

Sham Stimulation

SHAM COMPARATOR

Sham Comparator: The blinding will be done with a sham coil, which consists of a coil that reproduces the sound that the true coil does, but without generating the magnetic field.

Device: Transcranial magnetic stimulation

Interventions

The coil will be positioned in the prefrontal dorsolateral cortex, with intermintent TBS (TBSi) mode on the left and continuous TBS (TBSc) on the right. 1800 pulses will be used on each side, totaling 10 minutes of total duration. There will be 20 consecutive sessions, one per day, except on weekends and holidays, totaling around 4 weeks. A day of stimulation with the same technique will be done in the 6th week, 8th week and 12th week.

Active StimulationSham Stimulation

Eligibility Criteria

Age60 Years+
Sexall
Healthy VolunteersNo
Age GroupsAdult (18-64), Older Adult (65+)

You may qualify if:

  • Major Depressive Disorder;
  • Patients older than 60 years
  • Hamilton equal or higher than 17

You may not qualify if:

  • Other mental disorders (alcohol or drug addiction, psychotic disorders, dementia, bipolar disorder);
  • Presence of serious neurological or clinical diseases;
  • Resence of severe suicidal ideation and CIRS (Cumulative Illness Rating Scale) score\> 7, characterizing a set of clinical morbidities that could impair adherence to the research protocol, bipolar disorder and/or presence of manic symptoms (hypo) demonstrated with more than 8 points in the Young Mania Rating Scale.
  • Metal implants;
  • Epilepsy or electronics in the cephalic segment;

Contact the study team to confirm eligibility.

Sponsors & Collaborators

Study Sites (1)

University of Sao Paulo

São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil

Location

Related Publications (1)

  • Valiengo L, Pinto BS, Marinho KAP, Santos LA, Tort LC, Benatti RG, Teixeira BB, Miranda CS, Cardeal HB, Suen PJC, Loureiro JC, Vaughan RAR, Dini Mattar RAMPF, Lessa M, Oliveira PS, Silva VA, Gattaz WF, Brunoni AR, Forlenza OV. Treatment of depression in the elderly with repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation using theta-burst stimulation: Study protocol for a randomized, double-blind, controlled trial. Front Hum Neurosci. 2022 Aug 31;16:941981. doi: 10.3389/fnhum.2022.941981. eCollection 2022.

MeSH Terms

Conditions

Depressive Disorder, Major

Interventions

Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation

Condition Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Depressive DisorderMood DisordersMental Disorders

Intervention Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Magnetic Field TherapyTherapeutics

Study Officials

  • Leandro Valiengo

    University of Sao Paulo

    PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR

Study Design

Study Type
interventional
Phase
not applicable
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Masking
QUADRUPLE
Who Masked
PARTICIPANT, CARE PROVIDER, INVESTIGATOR, OUTCOMES ASSESSOR
Purpose
TREATMENT
Intervention Model
PARALLEL
Sponsor Type
OTHER
Responsible Party
PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR
PI Title
Principal investigator

Study Record Dates

First Submitted

January 20, 2021

First Posted

April 13, 2021

Study Start

January 16, 2019

Primary Completion

March 20, 2023

Study Completion

March 20, 2023

Last Updated

September 29, 2025

Record last verified: 2025-09

Locations