A Comprehensive Review of Dorsomedial Prefrontal Cortex rTMS Utilizing a Double Cone Coil

• Published in: Neuromodulation (Malden, Mass.) Vol. 22; no. 8; pp. 851 - 866
• Main Authors: Kreuzer, Peter M., Downar, Jonathan, Ridder, Dirk, Schwarzbach, Jens, Schecklmann, Martin, Langguth, Berthold
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Hoboken, USA John Wiley & Sons, Inc 01.12.2019; Elsevier Limited
• Subjects: ACDC anterior cingulate cortex dm‐PFC dorsomedial prefrontal cortex double cone coil repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation; Autonomic nervous system; Clinical trials; Cognitive ability; Cortex (somatosensory); Depressive Disorder - psychology; Depressive Disorder - therapy; Humans; Magnetic fields; Mental disorders; Prefrontal Cortex; Therapeutic applications; Transcranial magnetic stimulation; Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation - instrumentation; Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation - methods; Treatment Outcome; ACDC anterior cingulate cortex dm-PFC dorsomedial prefrontal cortex double cone coil repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation
• ISSN: 1094-7159; 1525-1403; 1525-1403
• DOI: 10.1111/ner.12874

Background Repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) has become increasingly popular during the last decades mainly driven by the antidepressant effects of dorsolateral prefrontal cortex stimulation with “butterfly” coils. Only recently, alternative targets such as the dorsomedial prefrontal cortex (dmPFC) have been brought into focus and innovative coil designs such as the angled geometry of the double cone coil (DCC) have raised hope to reach even deeper located targets. Objective To provide a systematic and comprehensive review on the application of rTMS stimulation of the dmPFC using the DCC in neuropathological and healthy samples. Methods We systematically searched the MEDLINE® database (http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/). Due to the heterogeneous naming of DCC stimulation over the dmPFC a variety of search terms was applied resulting in a numeral quantity of 340 hits. Results DCC stimulation over the dmPFC has been proven to be safe and feasible in various neuropsychiatric disorders and in healthy subjects. Clinical results are encouraging, but have to be considered as preliminary as data from sham‐controlled clinical trials and knowledge about the neurobiological underpinnings are still scarce. Conclusion DCC stimulation over the dmPFC represents a promising approach in the fast evolving noninvasive brain stimulation techniques aiming at the functional modulation of brain areas vitally involved in affect, sensory autonomic, cognitive, and salience regulation. This may hold potential for both neuroscientific research and clinical applications in the treatment of psychiatric disorders.