For Patients
Thank you for visiting our Clinical Research website. Here at the Stanford Brain Stimulation Lab, we strive to provide excellent care to all potential research participants.
We understand that joining a research study can be complicated and our staff is more than happy to discuss the intricacies of clinical research with you and ensure that you have all the information you need to make an informed decision about participating.
A Minds Wide Open Short: Nolan Williams’s new TMS therapy for depression
Mental Health in Motion: Out of the Lab & Into the World -2024
Nolan Williams
Al Interviews Dr. Nolan Williams on the topic of Stanford Accelerated Intelligent Neuromodulation Therapy (SAINT)
Listen to The Depression Files Podcast
25% of the US population knows someone who has a mental illness, with a large percentage related to depression or other illnesses. We can help.
Join a Clinical Trial
If you are interested in joining an outpatient study, please click on the sign-up button next to the clinical trial you think best fits your needs. Once you complete the online questionnaire, study staff will review your information to ensure that the study is appropriate for your given need. If more information is needed staff will contact you.
Utilizing Changes in Human Brain Connectivity to Establish a Dose-Response Relationship Involved in the Therapeutic Actions of Prefrontal Brain Stimulation on Depression Symptoms
Clinicaltrials.gov identifier: NCT04243798
This is a double-blind study where half the participants will receive SAINT, while the other half will receive inactive (or sham) treatment. The goal of this study is to further assess the effectiveness of SAINT in a larger population. This study also investigates changes in the brain associated with treatment by using brain imaging techniques and non-invasive brain recordings.
Download SAINT Depression Study Brochure
Personalized Therapeutic Neuromodulation for Anhedonic Depression
Clinicaltrials.gov identifier: NCT05144789
This study will investigate the anti-anhedonic efficacy of a novel neurostimulation strategy termed accelerated intermittent theta burst stimulation (aiTBS) in participants with treatment resistant depression (TRD). This study will evaluate aiTBS on the left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (L-DLPFC) as well as the dorsomedial prefrontal cortex (DMPFC) in a double blind fashion. In this 3 condition study 33% of participants will be randomized into either active Stimulation L-DLPFC, 33% will be randomized into active stimulation DMPFC and 33% will receive sham/placebo stimulation
Pilot Accelerated Theta Burst in Treatment-Resistant Bipolar Depression
Clinicaltrials.gov identifier: NCT03953417
This study evaluates an accelerated schedule of theta-burst stimulation using a transcranial magnetic stimulation device for treatment-resistant bipolar type 2 depression. This is a double-blind study where half the participants will receive accelerated intermittent theta-burst stimulation (aiTBS), while the other half will receive inactive (or sham) treatment.
Modulating Probabilities: Prediction, Assessment, and Treatment of Acute Mood Depressive Episode in Borderline Personality Disorder with rTMS
Clinicaltrials.gov identifier: NCT04870255
This project aims to measure and modulate a mood depressive episode (MDE) in individuals with borderline personality disorder (BPD) trait and comorbid mood depressive disorder (MDD) or bipolar II disorder in a current mood depressive episode (MDE). This study will test the antidepressant effect of aiTBS stimulation over the left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (L-DLPFC), and aiTBS stimulation over the dorsomedial prefrontal cortex (DMPFC) compared with sham.
A Pilot Trial Refining the Protocol for the Use of Repetitive Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (rTMS) for the Treatment of Cannabis Use Disorder: Testing Two Different Treatment Locations and NeuroImaging Based Targeting.
Clinicaltrials.gov identifier: NCT03144232
With a push towards legalization across the country, more and more people are using marijuana (cannabis). Many people use marijuana with minimal ill effects, but a subset of people who use it develop a dysfunctional use pattern where the ill effects of their use outweigh the effects they consider beneficial. This condition, medically termed cannabis use disorder (CUD), is similar to other addictive disorders such as alcohol use disorder and tobacco use disorder. Those with CUD by definition suffer substantial personal, occupational, and/or health adverse effects, and despite these adverse effects often have difficulty quitting on their own.
As a medical community we currently do not have any established medication to treat CUD, and our psychotherapies are only moderately effective. Thankfully an understanding of the brain circuit abnormalities associated with CUD have led to several potential treatment strategies. One such treatment strategy is to increase the strength of the so-called ‘self-control’, or ‘cognitive-control’ network in relation to resisting marijuana use and another treatment strategy is to decrease the over-reactivity of the ’reward’ network in response to marijuana. There have been several studies showing that each strategy has the potential to help people reduce their use of substances if they have a substance use disorder, including a recent study we completed in CUD (attempting to increase the strength of the ‘cognitive-control’ network).
In this study we are hoping to work with a group of people who are suffering from CUD and are interested in quitting, or substantially reducing the amount of marijuana they use. We are studying the effects of the two different study-treatment strategies using repetitive Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (rTMS)–one form of rTMS that we think strengthens the ‘cognitive-control’ network in relation to marijuana, and another form of rTMS that we think decreases the over-reactivity of the ‘reward-network’ to marijuana. All participants additionally receive an established psychotherapy. We will be trying to learn if one treatment strategy works better than the other, whether we can use magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to precisely target the study treatment, and whether we can use MRI to predict whether an individual might respond better to one of the strategies. The use of rTMS, much like we will use it in this study, is cleared by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the treatment of Major Depressive Disorder, Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, and smoking cessation. It subsequently has a long safety track record (it is thought to be safe and has few side effects) and is well known to provide long lasting benefit in the conditions it is cleared for. There are no thinking or memory side effects associated with rTMS and it does not appear to change normally functioning brain networks.
If you are wanting to quit using or substantially reduce your use of marijuana, this study might be right for you. For more information on the study please feel free to reach out to our study team at 650-490-8194 or quitmarijuana@stanford.edu
Neuroimaging Biomarkers for Predicting rTMS Response in OCD
ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT04286126
We are currently investigating a new form of repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) to treat OCD in adults.
Previous research indicates that two rTMS targets may be effective in treating OCD: the dorsomedial prefrontal cortex (DMPFC) and the orbitofrontal cortex (OFC). Patients often show a strong response to one target but not the other. It is not well understood why some patients respond, while others do not. The goal of this study is to better understand the association between individual biological characteristics (biomarkers) and treatment responses. This study also investigates changes in the brain associated with treatment by using brain imaging techniques and non-invasive brain recordings.
We are currently recruiting adults 18 and older to participate.
Download SAINT OCD Study Brochure
For patients who wish to be seen in our psychiatry clinic, please contact:
Stanford Psychiatry Intake 650-498-9111
