Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40883451›Full record

Trial reportMolecular psychiatry2026

Intermittent theta burst stimulation for non-suicidal self-injury in adolescents with major depressive disorder: a randomized, sham-controlled trial.

Yue Qin, Haiyu Chen, Fangkun Liu, Tianxiang Zou, Kun Jin, Ziwei Teng, Jieyu Liu, Hui Yuan, Jun Yang, Chunxiang Huang and 5 more

Abstract readRandomized Controlled Trial
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Trial report in Molecular psychiatry, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 6 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
6citing papers in PubMed, 1 pooled it
–field-weighted citation impact
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

6 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.

  1. Pooled it
  2. Trial
  3. Trial
  4. Review
  5. Article
  6. 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

15 authors.

Yue Qin *Department of Psychiatry, National Clinical Research Center for Mental Disorders, and National Center for Mental Disorders, The Second Xiangya Hospital of Central South University, Changsha, 410011, Hunan, China.
Haiyu Chen *Department of Psychiatry, National Clinical Research Center for Mental Disorders, and National Center for Mental Disorders, The Second Xiangya Hospital of Central South University, Changsha, 410011, Hunan, China.
Fangkun LiuDepartment of Neurosurgery, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, 410008, Hunan Province, China.
Tianxiang ZouDepartment of Psychiatry, National Clinical Research Center for Mental Disorders, and National Center for Mental Disorders, The Second Xiangya Hospital of Central South University, Changsha, 410011, Hunan, China.
Kun JinDepartment of Psychiatry, National Clinical Research Center for Mental Disorders, and National Center for Mental Disorders, The Second Xiangya Hospital of Central South University, Changsha, 410011, Hunan, China.
Ziwei TengDepartment of Psychiatry, The Second People's Hospital of Hunan Province (Hunan Brain Hospital), Changsha, Hunan, China.
Jieyu LiuDepartment of Ultrasound Diagnosis, The Second Xiangya Hospital of Central South University CN, Changsha, Hunan, China.
Hui YuanDepartment of Stomatology, The Second Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, Hunan, China.
Jun YangThe Second People's Hospital of Dali Bai Autonomous Prefecture, Dali, Yunnan, China.
Chunxiang HuangDepartment of Psychiatry, National Clinical Research Center for Mental Disorders, and National Center for Mental Disorders, The Second Xiangya Hospital of Central South University, Changsha, 410011, Hunan, China.
Xueping GaoDepartment of Psychiatry, National Clinical Research Center for Mental Disorders, and National Center for Mental Disorders, The Second Xiangya Hospital of Central South University, Changsha, 410011, Hunan, China.
Jindong ChenDepartment of Psychiatry, National Clinical Research Center for Mental Disorders, and National Center for Mental Disorders, The Second Xiangya Hospital of Central South University, Changsha, 410011, Hunan, China.
Renrong WuDepartment of Psychiatry, National Clinical Research Center for Mental Disorders, and National Center for Mental Disorders, The Second Xiangya Hospital of Central South University, Changsha, 410011, Hunan, China.ORCID 0000-0003-1758-4738
Xilong CuiDepartment of Psychiatry, National Clinical Research Center for Mental Disorders, and National Center for Mental Disorders, The Second Xiangya Hospital of Central South University, Changsha, 410011, Hunan, China. cuixilong@csu.edu.cn.
Jing HuangDepartment of Psychiatry, National Clinical Research Center for Mental Disorders, and National Center for Mental Disorders, The Second Xiangya Hospital of Central South University, Changsha, 410011, Hunan, China. jinghuangserena@csu.edu.cn.ORCID 0000-0002-7317-7259

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Non-suicidal self-injury (NSSI) poses a significant threat to adolescents with major depressive disorder (MDD) owing to elevated hospitalization and suicidality risks. Intermittent theta burst stimulation (iTBS) shows promise for treating NSSI in adolescents with depression. The efficacy of iTBS for treating NSSI in adolescents with MDD was evaluated in this study. In this sham-controlled, randomized clinical trial, adolescents with MDD were allocated randomly to active or sham treatment groups in a 1:1 ratio. They received active or sham iTBS over the left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (LDLPFC) for five sessions daily for 5 days. The primary outcome was the difference in NSSI frequency and severity at 4-week follow-up, assessed using the Deliberate Self-Harm Inventory-Adolescent Revised version (DSHI-AR). Additional measures included changes in the Deliberate Self-Harm Ideation Scale for Adolescents Revised (DSHI-AR ideation) and Ottawa Self-Injury Inventory-addiction subscale (OSI-addiction). Of the 60 participants (mean [standard deviation] age, 14.2 [1.5] years; female sex, 55 patients [91.7%]), 85% completed the intervention. At 4 weeks post-intervention, the active treatment group showed greater DSHI-AR score reduction than the sham treatment group (mean difference, -18.66; 95% confidence interval [CI], -28.35--8.97). Active treatment led to a greater decline in DSHI-AR ideation (mean difference, -9.23; 95% CI, -14.41--4.05) and OSI-addiction (mean difference, -6.16; 95% CI, -10.58--1.74) scores compared with the sham treatment. Mild headaches were reported during the intervention, without significant group differences. The findings indicate that iTBS targeting the LDLPFC is an effective and well-tolerated strategy for treating NSSI in adolescents with MDD.

Indexed as

Major Depressive DisorderSelf-Injurious BehaviorTranscranial Magnetic StimulationAdolescentDorsolateral Prefrontal CortexFemaleHumansMalePrefrontal CortexPsychiatric Status Rating ScalesSuicidal IdeationTheta RhythmTreatment Outcome

Identifiers

PMID40883451
PMCPMC12815678

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY-NC-ND
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.