Evidence map›Paper›PMID 37171472›Full record

SynthesisHarvard review of psychiatry

The Impact of Sex Hormones on Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation Measures of Cortical Excitability: A Systematic Review and Considerations for Clinical Practice.

Ana Maria Rivas-Grajales, Tracy Barbour, Joan A Camprodon, Michael D Kritzer

Open access · greenAbstract readSystematic Review
In one paragraph

Synthesis in Harvard review of psychiatry. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 12 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
12citing papers in PubMed
2.1field-weighted citation impact, top 13% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

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.

2 · The registry

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.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

12 citing papers in PubMed, 17 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Review
  2. Review
  3. Article
  4. Review
  5. Neurodevelopmental considerations for transcranial magnetic stimulation trials in youth.Neuropsychopharmacology : official publication of the American College of Neuropsychopharmacology · 2026
    Review
  6. Article
  7. Article
  8. Article
  9. Four dimensions of individualization in brain stimulation for psychiatric disorders: context, target, dose, and timing.Neuropsychopharmacology : official publication of the American College of Neuropsychopharmacology · 2025
    Review
  10. Article
  11. Article
  12. Introduction.Harvard review of psychiatry
    Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

4 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.

Ana Maria Rivas-GrajalesFrom the Department of Psychiatry, Boston Medical Center, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA (Dr. Rivas-Grajales); Department of Psychiatry, Division of Behavioral Neurology and Neuropsychiatry, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA (Drs. Barbour, Camprodon, Kritzer); Department of Psychiatry, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA (Drs. Camprodon, Kritzer).
Tracy Barbour
Joan A Camprodon
Michael D Kritzer
Massachusetts General Hospital · US

Funding

Translational Neuroscience Training for CliniciansT32MH112485 · NIMH · MASSACHUSETTS GENERAL HOSPITAL · PI BUCKNER, RANDY L, ROFFMAN, JOSHUA LAWRENCE · 2018 to 2022
$1.7M
ATTENTIONAL BIASES IN CHILDREN WITH CHRONIC PAINF31MH012737 · NIMH · UNIVERSITY OF VERMONT &ST AGRIC COLLEGE · PI BOYER, MARGARET C · 2000 to 2002
$77k
NIMH NIH HHS F31 MH012737NIMH NIH HHS T32 MH112485
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

abstractRepetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) has emerged as a promising alternative for the treatment of major depressive disorder (MDD), although its clinical effectiveness varies substantially. The effects of sex hormone fluctuations on cortical excitability have been identified as potential factors that can explain this variability. However, data on how sex hormone changes affect clinical response to rTMS is limited. To address this gap, we reviewed the literature examining the effects of sex hormones and hormonal treatments on transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) measures of cortical excitability. Results show that variations of endogenous estrogen, testosterone, and progesterone have modulatory effects on TMS-derived measures of cortical excitability. Specifically, higher levels of estrogen and testosterone were associated with greater cortical excitability, while higher progesterone was associated with lower cortical excitability. This highlights the importance of additional investigation into the effects of hormonal changes on rTMS outcomes and circuit-specific physiological variables. These results call for TMS clinicians to consider performing more frequent motor threshold (MT) assessments in patients receiving high doses of estrogen, testosterone, and progesterone in cases such as in vitro fertilization, hormone replacement therapy, and gender-affirming hormonal treatments. It may also be important to consider physiological hormonal fluctuations and their impact on depressive symptoms and the MT when treating female patients with rTMS.

Indexed as

Cortical ExcitabilityMajor Depressive DisorderEstrogensEvoked Potentials, MotorFemaleHumansProgesteroneTestosteroneTranscranial Magnetic StimulationEstrogensProgesteroneTestosterone

Identifiers

PMID37171472
PMCPMC10264142
OpenAlexW4376225201

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceTDM
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

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.