Accelerated Neuromodulation Therapy and Neurocomputational Biomarkers in Individuals at Clinical High Risk for Psychosis

What this study is about

The goal of this study is to learn whether an accelerated form of neuromodulation therapy is safe, feasible, and well tolerated in young people at clinical high risk for psychosis (CHR-P), and whether it is associated with changes in candidate biomarkers of treatment response. Participants will be randomly assigned to receive either active accelerated intermittent theta burst stimulation (iTBS) or sham stimulation to the left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, delivered over five consecutive days. The study will look at whether this accelerated treatment approach is safe and feasible for people at clinical high risk for psychosis, whether depressive symptoms improve after treatment, and whether computerized behavioural tasks and passive digital monitoring (wearables, smartphone apps, and speech analysis) can detect treatment-related changes that may serve as biomarkers for future, larger trials. Participants will complete clinical interviews and questionnaires, a cognitive battery, and computerized behavioral tasks; wear a Fitbit and use smartphone applications for at least two weeks before and throughout treatment; receive neuromodulation therapy or sham stimulation over five consecutive days; and attend follow-up visits at 1 week, 1 month, and 3 months after treatment.

Who can join (things the study team will check)

✅ You may be able to join if…

• Meets clinical CHR-P criteria, confirmed by the Structured Interview for Psychosis-Risk Syndromes (SIPS)
• Clinical team confirms sufficient stability to participate
• Able to provide informed consent

🚫 You may not be able to join if…

• Pregnancy, lactation, or intrauterine device
• History of electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) in the past 6 months
• Substance use during the treatment week (cigarettes and cannabis excluded from this consideration)
• Contraindications for TMS (e.g., metal implants in head/neck, seizure history, brain tumor/neurosurgery, severe cardiac disease)
• Previous rTMS treatment
• Documented history of significant intellectual disability

Where this trial is running

• McGill Lab for Computational Psychiatry and Translation, Verdun, Quebec, Canada

Who to contact

Ashley Choucroun · 5146593488 · ashley.choucroun.comtl@ssss.gouv.qc.ca

It's completely normal to call and ask questions before deciding anything. Mention the study ID: NCT07786714.