title: Transcranial magnetic stimulation and transcranial direct current stimulation appear to be safe neuromodulatory techniques useful in the treatment of anxiety disorders and other neuropsychiatric disorders.
abstract: Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) has recently been investigated as a possible adjuvant treatment for many neuropsychiatric disorders, and has already been approved for the treatment of drug-resistant depression in the United States and in Brazil, among other countries. Although its use in other neuropsychiatric disorders is still largely experimental, many physicians have been using it as an off-label add-on therapy for various disorders. More recently, another technique, transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS), has also become available as a much cheaper and portable alternative to TMS, although its mechanisms of action are different from those of TMS. The use of off-label therapeutic TMS or tDCS tends to occur in the setting of diseases that are notoriously resistant to other treatment modalities. Here we discuss the case of anxiety disorders, namely panic and post-traumatic stress disorders, highlighting the uncertainties and potential problems and benefits of the clinical use of these neuromodulatory techniques at the current stage of knowledge.
authors.affiliation: Universidade de Brasília, Instituto de Psicologia, Brasília DF, Brasil.
authors.forename: Aline
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Iannone
authors.affiliation: Universidade de Brasília, Instituto de Psicologia, Brasília DF, Brasil.
authors.forename: Antonio Pedro de Mello
authors.initials: AP
authors.lastname: Cruz
authors.affiliation: Universidade de Brasília, Instituto de Biologia, Departamento de Ciências Fisiológicas, Laboratório de Neurociências e Comportamento, Brasília DF, Brasil.
authors.forename: Joaquim Pereira
authors.initials: JP
authors.lastname: Brasil-Neto
authors.affiliation: Universidade de Brasília, Faculdade de Medicina, Departamento de Psiquiatria, Brasília DF, Brasil.
authors.forename: Raphael
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Boechat-Barros
mesh_terms: D001008:Anxiety Disorders / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000628:therapy*; D006801:Humans; D001523:Mental Disorders / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000628:therapy*; D009422:Nervous System Diseases / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000628:therapy*; D017397:Prefrontal Cortex / Q000503:physiopathology; D065908:Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation / Q000379:methods*; D050781:Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation / Q000379:methods*; D016896:Treatment Outcome