Brain Stimulation Service

The Brain Stimulation Service at the Institute of Psychiatry offers procedures to help patients with treatment-resistant mood disorders.  In many patients, traditional drug or talk therapy treatments have not been effective in relieving major depression.

MUSC has been at the forefront of brain stimulation therapy, including the first published use of Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS) for depression (1995), the first Vagus nerve implant for depression (1998), an Epidural prefrontal cortical stimulation (EpCS) performed in 2008, and the first Focal Electrically-administered Seizure Therapy (FEAST) done outside of New York (2010).

The scientists at MUSC perform a range of brain stimulation procedures that are changing what's possible.  These include:

Electroconvulsive Therapy (ECT) — ultra-brief pulse unilateral ECT minimizes the cognitive side effects of classic ECT

Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS) — now FDA-approved for treatment-resistant depression

Vagus Nerve Stimulation (VNS) — FDA-approved for treatment-resistant depression

Deep Brain Stimulation (DBS) — a new FDA-approved treatment for severe obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD)

All brain stimulation procedures have been developed by or guided through approval by MUSC researchers and clinicians.  The doctors and clinical professionals who developed the science are the people actually treating patients.