Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation for Youth With Treatment-Resistant Major Depressive Disorder

Brief Summary

Background: Major depressive disorder (MDD) is one of the most impairing medical conditions in the world. Medication and some kinds of talk therapy are standard treatments for teens with MDD, but these do not work well for everyone. Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) has been approved to treat MDD in adults. TMS might help adolescents, too. Objective: To test TMS combined with cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) in teens with MDD. Eligibility: People aged 13 to 17 years with MDD that has not responded to treatment. Design: Participants will be screened. They will have a physical exam and psychiatric evaluation. They will have an MRI scan and a test of their heart function. They will enroll in 2 NIH protocols (01-M-0254 and 18-M-0037). For 2 to 6 weeks, participants will have weekly CBT, a kind of talk therapy. They will taper off of their psychiatric medicines. For 2 weeks, participants will come to the clinic every weekday. They will receive 3 or 4 sessions of TMS on each of those days. A wire coil will be held on their scalp. A brief electrical current in the coil creates a magnetic pulse that affects brain activity. They will receive 30 TMS pulses in 10-second bursts; these will be repeated 60 times in each 15-minute session. Participants may hear a click and feel a pulling sensation under the coil. They may feel their muscles twitch. Each day, they will have tests of concentration, thinking, and memory. Some may have a 3rd week of TMS. Participants will remain in the study for 5 more weeks. They will begin taking their medications again.