SynthesisThe Psychiatric quarterly2020
A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomized Sham-Controlled Trials of Repetitive Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation for Bipolar Disorder.
Synthesis in The Psychiatric quarterly, 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 13 papers.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
13 citing papers in PubMed, 31 citations in OpenAlex.
- Cognitive Remediation in Patients With Bipolar Disorder: A Randomized Trial by Sequential tDCS and Navigated rTMS Targeting the Primary Visual Cortex.CNS neuroscience & therapeutics · 2024Trial
- Treatment of mixed depression with theta-burst stimulation (TBS): results from a double-blind, randomized, sham-controlled clinical trial.Neuropsychopharmacology : official publication of the American College of Neuropsychopharmacology · 2021Trial
- Neurostimulation in the treatment of psychiatric disorders: Underlying mechanisms and critical analysis of circuit-based interventions.Molecular psychiatry · 2026Review
- A review of mechanisms and optimization strategies for clinical improvement after repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation in bipolar disorder.Frontiers in psychiatry · 2026Review
- Clinical practice guidelines for the management of bipolar disorder: 2025 update.Indian journal of psychiatry · 2026Article
- Efficacy, Effectiveness, and Safety of Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation for Bipolar Depression: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.Biological psychiatry global open science · 2026Article
- Neuromodulation and neural networks in psychiatric disorders: current status and emerging prospects.Psychological medicine · 2025Review
- Consensus review and considerations on TMS to treat depression: A comprehensive update endorsed by the National Network of Depression Centers, the Clinical TMS Society, and the International Federation of Clinical Neurophysiology.Clinical neurophysiology : official journal of the International Federation of Clinical Neurophysiology · 2025Review
- Article
- A New Treatment Protocol of Combined High-Dose Levothyroxine and Repetitive Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation for the Treatment of Rapid-Cycling Bipolar Spectrum Disorders: A Cohort Evaluation of 55 Patients.Journal of clinical medicine · 2022Article
- A new approach for the treatment of subthreshold bipolar disorders: Targeted high dose levothyroxine and repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation for mitochondrial treatment.Frontiers in psychiatry · 2022Review
- Repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation for major depressive disorder: basic principles and future directions.Therapeutic advances in psychopharmacology · 2021Review
- Case Report: Repeated Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation Improves Comorbid Binge Eating Disorder in Two Female Patients With Treatment-Resistant Bipolar Depression.Frontiers in psychiatry · 2021Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
2 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundRepetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) is effective in treating unipolar depression. However, the efficacy of rTMS in bipolar disorder (BD) is unclear. This meta-analysis aimed to examine the efficacy and tolerability of rTMS for both depressive and manic phases in BD.
methodsMEDLINE, EMBASE, PsycINFO, CENTRAL databases were searched for controlled trials on treatment of BD with rTMS. Primary outcomes included changes in depression or mania scores, response and remission rates. Secondary outcomes included quality of life and functioning assessment. We used random-effects model, Hedge's g, risk differences (RDs) and the number needed to treat (NNT).
resultsEleven randomized sham-controlled studies were included, with a total of 345 patients with BD (bipolar depression = 257, mania = 86, mixed affective = 2). Trials of rTMS in bipolar depression (N = 8) demonstrated small but significant improvement in depression scores [standardized mean difference = 0.302, p < 0.05], compared to control group. Furthermore, rTMS brought a higher remission rate than sham-controls [RD = 0.104 ± 0.044, p < 0.05, NNT = 10; and a trend of greater response rate [RD = 0.074 ± 0.039, p = 0.06]. Results were inconclusive for effect of rTMS in mania. In both depressive and manic groups, no serious adverse events were reported. Risk of treatment-emergent mania appeared low. LIMITATIONS: There was limited number of eligible primary studies, with variable randomization procedures.
conclusionrTMS appears safe and effective in treating bipolar depression. More stringent RCTs are necessary for concrete conclusion about efficacy in mania.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.