Objective: Major depressive disorder (MDD) and chronic pain are highly comorbid and bidirectionally related. Repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) over the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex is effective in treating MDD, but additional research is needed to determine if chronic pain interferes with rTMS for MDD.
Methods: Participants were 124 veterans ( Mage = 49.
Objectives: Two commonly used forms of repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) were recently shown to be equivalent for the treatment of depression: high-frequency stimulation (10 Hz), a protocol that lasts between 19 and 38 minutes, and intermittent theta burst stimulation (iTBS), a protocol that can be delivered in just three minutes. However, it is unclear whether iTBS treatment offers the same benefits as those of standard 10-Hz rTMS for comorbid symptoms such as those seen in posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
Materials And Methods: In this retrospective case series, we analyzed treatment outcomes in veterans from the Veterans Affairs San Diego Healthcare System who received 10-Hz (n = 47) or iTBS (n = 51)-rTMS treatments for treatment-resistant depression between February 2018 and June 2022.
Neuropsychopharmacology
January 2023
Activity-dependent synaptic plasticity is a ubiquitous property of the nervous system that allows neurons to communicate and change their connections as a function of past experiences. Through reweighting of synaptic strengths, the nervous system can remodel itself, giving rise to durable memories that create the biological basis for mental function. In healthy individuals, synaptic plasticity undergoes characteristic developmental and aging trajectories.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFCard Electrophysiol Clin
March 2021
Hypertension (HT) confers the highest population-attributable risk among factors leading to atrial fibrillation (AF). Data also are accumulating regarding the association between pre-HT, aortic stiffness, and increased incident AF or AF recurrence. Atrial remodeling due to HT is progressive but also reversible.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFModifiable risk factor management is becoming one of the 3 treatment pillars in atrial fibrillation management along with anticoagulation as well as conventional rate and rhythm control strategies. Preventive therapies, such as reducing blood pressure and treating obstructive sleep apnea, are paramount in the strategy of preventing atrial fibrillation. Identification of new modifiable risk factors and triggers also could help in the global strategy to reduce atrial fibrillation.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFEnergy-dense food alters dopaminergic (DA) transmission in the mesocorticolimbic (MCL) system and can promote reward dysfunctions, compulsive feeding, and weight gain. Yet the mechanisms by which nutrients influence the MCL circuitry remain elusive. Here, we show that nutritional triglycerides (TGs), a conserved post-prandial metabolic signature among mammals, can be metabolized within the MCL system and modulate DA-associated behaviors by gating the activity of dopamine receptor subtype 2 (DRD2)-expressing neurons through a mechanism that involves the action of the lipoprotein lipase (LPL).
View Article and Find Full Text PDFCardiac mapping has witnessed significant and unprecedented progress over more than a century. At present, several mapping/imaging technologies are commercially available, alone or in combination. This article briefly discusses the advantages and limitations (disadvantages) of each technique.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFCard Electrophysiol Clin
December 2019
Fascicular ventricular tachycardia (FVT) usually involves the left fascicular system; namely the left posterior fascicle, anterior fascicle, and rarely the upper septal fascicle. It may also involve the right Purkinje arborization. This tachycardia can be seen in normal heart or in the setting of structural heart diseases.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFCard Electrophysiol Clin
September 2019
Cardiac fibrosis is a significant increase in collagen volume fraction of myocardial tissue. It plays an important role in the pathophysiology of many cardiovascular abnormalities. Electrophysiologically, myocardial fibrosis produces anisotropic conduction, inhomogeneity, and conduction delay.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFCardiac mapping has evolved from single point-by-point registration of cardiac electrical activity to its utmost real-time multimodality of mapping and imaging for catheter ablation of arrhythmias. The technology began with electrocardiogram recordings and evolved to the simultaneous registration of depolarization and repolarization using optical mapping and real-time multimodality imaging. Zero to near-zero fluoroscopy is currently used in practice to avoid radiation exposure.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPacing Clin Electrophysiol
August 2019
J Electrocardiol
October 2019
Background: A 72-year-old white male with a history of rapid nonsustained ventricular tachycardia, hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, and intermittent Brugada-type ECG had a single-lead implantable cardioverter-defibrillator (ICD) implantation and received a sudden ICD shock while in the hot tub. To the best of our knowledge this is the first case report of hot tub jet-induced inappropriate ICD shock.
Methods: ICD interrogation and analysis of intracardiac electrograms and event markers.
Ventricular arrhythmias remain a significant cause of sudden cardiac death (SCD), and knowledge of their cause and high-risk features is important. SCD occurs when the interaction between vulnerable substrates and acute triggers results in sustained ventricular tachycardia progressing to ventricular fibrillation. Here, the authors aim to review the role of ventricular arrhythmias in SCD, first by approaching the substrates that support ventricular arrhythmias, and then by exploring features of these substrates and the acute triggers that may lead to SCD.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFCard Electrophysiol Clin
December 2017
Although the electrocardiograph (ECG) was invented more than 100 years ago, it remains the most commonly used test in clinical medicine. It is easy to perform, relatively cheap, and results are readily available. Interpretation, however, needs expertise and knowledge.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Paroxysmal atrioventricular (A-V) block is relatively rare, and due to its transient nature, it is often under recognized. It is often triggered by atrial, junctional, or ventricular premature beats, and occurs in the presence of a diseased His-Purkinje system (HPS). Here, we present a 45-year-old white male who was admitted for observation due to recurrent syncope and near-syncope, who had paroxysmal A-V block.
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