Efficacy and Safety of Temporal Interference Stimulation in Treatment-Resistant Schizophrenia: An Exploratory Study.

Brief Summary

This exploratory study aims to evaluate the preliminary efficacy and safety of temporal interference (TI) stimulation in patients with treatment-resistant schizophrenia (TRS). TI is a noninvasive brain stimulation technique that uses two high-frequency electrical currents with slightly different frequencies to generate a lower-frequency modulation at a targeted deep brain region. A total of 20 patients with TRS will receive 130-Hz TI stimulation targeting the anterior limb of the internal capsule (ALIC). Stimulation will be delivered at a total current intensity of 4 mA for 5 consecutive days, with four 40-minute sessions per day. Participants will continue their stable antipsychotic medication regimen during the study. Clinical symptoms, cognitive function, social functioning, and safety will be assessed before treatment, after completion of the 5-day treatment course, and at a 2-week follow-up. The primary clinical outcome is the change in the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS) total score. Secondary assessments include PANSS subscale scores, the MATRICS Consensus Cognitive Battery (MCCB), Calgary Depression Scale for Schizophrenia (CDSS), Personal and Social Performance Scale (PSP), and Clinical Global Impression (CGI). Safety will be evaluated through daily monitoring of treatment-related discomfort and adverse events. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) will also be performed before and after treatment to explore treatment-related changes in brain structure, functional activity, functional connectivity, activation, and cerebral blood flow. The study hypothesizes that TI stimulation targeting the ALIC may improve clinical symptoms in patients with TRS and may be associated with measurable changes in neuroimaging markers.