rTMS With and Without Text4Support for the Treatment of Resistant Depression.

What this study is about

This study is a multicenter prospective, parallel design, two-arm, rater-blinded randomized controlled pilot trial. Participants will be randomly assigned to one of two treatment conditions. In the first condition, treatment consists of rTMS sessions combined with Text4Support. The second condition is made up of the treatment as usual (rTMS sessions alone). The recruitment process is scheduled to last 12 months. It will involve active treatment for six weeks and follow-up period observation periods of 1,3, and 6 months for participants in both arms of the study. Participants will be recruited from four different centers for this project. Two centers (the Addiction and Mental Health clinic and the Alberta day hospital) will be from the large, sociodemographic diverse city of Edmonton in Alberta Western Canada. The remaining two centers will be in Halifax and Annapolis Valley in Nova Scotia, Canada.

Who can join (things the study team will check)

✅ You may be able to join if…

• aged 18 and above and diagnosed with MDD based upon the criteria of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5) and who have at least failed two or more standard antidepressant treatments during the current episode. Participants may be on psychotropic medications including antidepressants, antipsychotics, benzodiazepines, and anticonvulsants. They must have a good understanding of the English language. Must have access to a smartphone and be able to receive and read text messages. Must be willing to provide written informed consent upon acceptance into the study.

🚫 You may not be able to join if…

• Patients below the age of 18.
• Having diagnosis such as the following conditions (current unless otherwise stated): A neurological disorder, including a history of seizures, having primary or secondary tumors in the central nervous system, cerebrovascular disease, stroke, cerebral aneurysm, movement disorder,
• Having a current psychotic disorder such as substance-induced psychosis, psychotic disorder due to a medical condition, or MDD with psychotic features at the time of screening
• Having a current personality disorder that may hinder the patient's participation in this research or may have the potential of affecting cognition and ability to fully participate in the study.
• Having a learning disability as per identified through medical history or by the investigator during the assessment process.
• Participants involved in any drug or device clinical trial within the last six weeks before the screening visit and/or involvement in another clinical trial for the duration of this study.
• Pregnant and breastfeeding women.
• Identification and/or the sudden appearance of any condition or instance from the mentioned above and based on the expertise of the investigators that have the potential to hinder the progress and completion and/or become a confounding factor on the outcome assessments.

Where this trial is running

• Edmonton Mental Health Clinic, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
• Nova Scotia Health - Abbie J. Lane Memorial Building QEII Health Sciences Centre, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada

Who to contact

Vincent Agyapong, MD, Ph.D · 780-215-7771 · agyapong@ualberta.ca

It's completely normal to call and ask questions before deciding anything. Mention the study ID: NCT05570344.