Promising Alzheimer’s Trial Seeking Additional Participants

Dr. Kate Hoy of Australian public research university Monash University is seeking additional participants for a trial of the use of Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS) for people with Alzheimer’s, IFLScience.com reports.  

This method of treatment, which involves using powerful magnets outside the skull to produce electric currents within in the brain, has been used to successfully to treat depression, Parkinson’s disease, and memory loss with very few side effects. While Hoy and her team have only performed approximately 12 trials so far “these have generally shown some small improvements,” Hoy told IFLScience. 

Unlike traditional TMS treatment, which lasts approxmiatley 45 minutes, Hoy’s study has focused on theta burst stimulation – “a patented form of TMS, much more consistent with the way the brain fires” – which can be just as effective in only 3 minutes. “According to Hoy, this allows the team to target four brain regions effectively without having the process take uncomfortably long,” IFLScience reported. 

In order to participate in the trial, participants must be diagnosed with mild to moderate Alzheimer’s and not be at risk for seizures or have an unstable medical condition. Treatment takes six weeks and must be conducted in Melbourne, Australia. At the time of publication, Hoy had secured enough funding to treat 100 participants over the next three years.