Since June 2019, insurance for repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) has been covered, and the rTMS therapy is being introduced at the Department of Neuropsychiatry in Osaka Medical and Pharmaceutical University Hospital. The staff attended a training course to meet the implementation standards in accordance with the guidelines for proper use of rTMS created by The Japanese Society of Psychiatry and Neurology. In order to operate the purchased NeuroStar TMS treatment device (Neuronetics, US), we devised a place to install it and already treated 10 or more patients with this device, and we are still receiving many requests for treatment with this device. In this paper, we introduce the measures and processes leading up to the introduction of treatment, as well as successful case and treatment data, and aim to serve as a reference for other institutions that are considering the introduction of rTMS treatment. It is hoped that with the spread of this treatment, further reintegration into society and recovery of self-efficacy will be possible in cases where sufficient therapeutic effects have not been obtained with conventional drug treatments.
Authors' abstract
Can rTMS be a Treatment Option for Depression?: Actual Operation Status at Osaka Medical and Pharmaceutical University Hospital
Department of Neuropsychiatry, Osaka Medical and Pharmaceutical University Hospital
Psychiatria et Neurologia Japonica
123: 468-474, 2021
Accepted in revised form: 11 March 2021.
Accepted in revised form: 11 March 2021.
<Keywords:rTMS, depression, insurance medical treatment, NeuroStar TMS, DLPFC>