Poster No:
89
Submission Type:
Abstract Submission
Authors:
Daniel Keeser1,2, Max Hasslberger3, Theresa Fäßler1, Maximilian Lueckel4, Kai-Yen Chang1,2, Lukas Roell1,2, Lucia Bulubas1,2, Julian Melcher1, Frank Padberg1, Til Ole Bergmann5, Boris-Stephan Rauchmann6
Institutions:
1Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Hospital LMU, Munich, Germany, 2NeuroImaging Core Unit Munich (NICUM), University Hospital LMU, Munich, Germany, 3Technical University Munich (TUM), Munich, Germany, 4Neuroimaging Center (NIC), Focus Program Translational Neuroscience, Johannes Gutenberg University, Mainz, Germany, 5Johannes-Gutenberg University Medical Center, Mainz, Rhineland-Palatinate, 6Department of Neuroradiology, University Hospital LMU, München, Deutschland
First Author:
Daniel Keeser
Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Hospital LMU|NeuroImaging Core Unit Munich (NICUM), University Hospital LMU
Munich, Germany|Munich, Germany
Co-Author(s):
Theresa Fäßler
Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Hospital LMU
Munich, Germany
Maximilian Lueckel
Neuroimaging Center (NIC), Focus Program Translational Neuroscience, Johannes Gutenberg University
Mainz, Germany
Kai-Yen Chang
Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Hospital LMU|NeuroImaging Core Unit Munich (NICUM), University Hospital LMU
Munich, Germany|Munich, Germany
Lukas Roell
Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Hospital LMU|NeuroImaging Core Unit Munich (NICUM), University Hospital LMU
Munich, Germany|Munich, Germany
Lucia Bulubas
Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Hospital LMU|NeuroImaging Core Unit Munich (NICUM), University Hospital LMU
Munich, Germany|Munich, Germany
Julian Melcher
Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Hospital LMU
Munich, Germany
Frank Padberg
Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Hospital LMU
Munich, Germany
Til Ole Bergmann
Johannes-Gutenberg University Medical Center
Mainz, Rhineland-Palatinate
Introduction:
The aim of this study was to investigate the direct effects of transcranial focused ultrasound stimulation (FUS) on cerebral blood flow in the primary motor cortex using a double-blind, theta-burst-like protocol (1). Given the limited efficacy of current treatments for severe psychiatric disorders, the investigation of FUS as a potential neuromodulatory tool in psychiatry is of relevance. The technique is still being established - this study is the first FUS study to investigate the effects on arterial spin labeling (pcASL).
Methods:
Seventeen healthy volunteers (mean age=26.31, SD=3.34; 9 women) participated in a rigorous experimental design in which they underwent FUS stimulation guided by precise neuronavigation targeting motor regions that utilized the maximum of the individual finger tapping BOLD signal from the baseline MRI measurement. The study spanned three days and included a baseline and randomized active/shame stimulation conditions. Arterial spin labeling (ASL) was performed both before and after the two stimulations, resulting in 5 measurements per subject and a total of 85 ASL measurements for the complete sample. The evaluation was performed with Oxford ASL (2) and used the regions of the Glasser atlas (3) for the primary motor cortex: 6cdl, 6cvl, 6dl, 6m, and 6vl and 8dl, 8m, and 8vl for both hemispheres.
Results:
Contrary to expectations, the study found no significant changes in cerebral blood flow in the primary motor cortex after FUS stimulation.
Conclusions:
These initial findings suggest that the current intensity parameters may not be robust enough to produce noticeable effects (we followed the current internationally recommended safety regulations). However, this finding forms the basis for future investigations, including secondary analyses using resting-state functional MRI (rsfMRI), magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS), and finger tapping paradigm, which have also been recorded but not yet analyzed.
Given the limited treatment options and the promising results from animal studies, research into FUS as a neuromodulatory approach for psychiatric patients remains important. Although no significant changes in cerebral blood flow in the primary motor cortex were achieved in this study, the translational aspect is of great importance, which probably needs to apply higher but safe intensities. This first pilot study underlines the need for further optimization of the stimulation parameters. The results of the study contribute to the ongoing discourse on innovative therapeutic modalities in psychiatry.
Brain Stimulation:
Invasive Stimulation Methods Other
Non-Invasive Stimulation Methods Other 1
Disorders of the Nervous System:
Psychiatric (eg. Depression, Anxiety, Schizophrenia)
Motor Behavior:
Motor Behavior Other 2
Novel Imaging Acquisition Methods:
Imaging Methods Other
Keywords:
Other - transcranial focused ultrasound stimulation (FUS)
1|2Indicates the priority used for review
Provide references using author date format
(1) Samuel et al. Brain Stimulation 2022
(2) Chappell et al., IEEE Transactions on Signal Processing 2009
(3) Glasser et al., Nature 2015