Effects of repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation on auditory hallucinations refractory to clozapine.

Objective: To study the therapeutic effects on auditory hallucinations refractory to clozapine with 1-Hz repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) applied on the left temporoparietal cortex.

Method: Eleven patients with schizophrenia (DSM-IV) experiencing auditory hallucinations (unresponsive to clozapine) were randomly assigned to receive either active of rTMS (N = 6) or sham stimulation (N = 5) (with concomitant use of clozapine) using a double-masked, sham-controlled, parallel design. A total of 160 minutes of rTMS (9600 pulses) was administered over 10 days at 90% motor threshold.