publications
Researching the future of brain-based mental health care
Wave supports and contributes to a growing body of scientific research exploring the future of brain-based mental health care.
Our research library includes both independent publications and Wave-sponsored clinical studies focused on advancing the science of personalized neuromodulation and improving our understanding of how individualized brain-based interventions may support mental health outcomes.
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Stanford Accelerated Intelligent Neuromodulation Therapy for Treatment-Resistant Depression
Date published
August 2020
Publication
American Journal of Psychiatry
Authors
Cole EJ, Stimpson KH, Bentzley BS, Gulser M, Cherian K, Tischler C, Nejad R, Pankow H, Choi E, Aaron H, Espil FM, Pannu J, Xiao X, Duvio D, Solvason HB, Hawkins J, Guerra A, Jo B, Raj KS, Phillips AL, Barmak F, Bishop JH, Coetzee JP, DeBattista C, Keller J, Schatzberg AF, Sudheimer KD, Williams NR
Key Takeaways
- Open-label trial of SAINT: 50 sessions of fMRI-guided, individually targeted iTBS delivered over five days to 22 participants with treatment-resistant depression.
- 90.5% of completers (19 of 21) met remission criteria (MADRS <11); 86.4% in the intent-to-treat analysis.
- Neuropsychological testing showed no negative cognitive side effects.
- Demonstrated the headroom that exists above standard fixed-protocol TMS when treatment is individualized to the patient's own brain.
Weak rTMS-induced electric fields produce neural entrainment in humans
Date published
July 2020
Publication
Scientific Reports
Authors
Zmeykina E, Mittner M, Paulus W, Turi Z
Key Takeaways
- Used individualized computational modeling of the induced electric field to guide rTMS intensity, with simultaneous EEG.
- Rhythmic rTMS consistently increased posterior alpha-band synchronization at electric field strengths roughly half the lowest conventional strength (80% of resting motor threshold).
- Entrainment — not raw stimulation energy — drives the electrophysiological effect: precisely timed weak stimulation changes brain rhythms.
- Supports the viability of lower-intensity, rhythm-matched protocols relative to conventional fixed high-intensity TMS.
The relationship between individual alpha peak frequency and clinical outcome with repetitive Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (rTMS) treatment of Major Depressive Disorder (MDD)
Date published
November 2019
Publication
Brain Stimulation
Authors
Corlier J, Carpenter LL, Wilson AC, Tirrell E, Gobin AP, Kavanaugh B, Leuchter AF
Key Takeaways
- 147 patients with major depressive disorder treated with rTMS; tested whether the proximity of a patient's individual alpha frequency (IAF) to the 10 Hz stimulation rate predicts outcome.
- In patients receiving 10 Hz left-DLPFC treatment, IAF and |IAF−10 Hz| proximity were significantly associated with degree of improvement (p<0.01); the highest-IAF quartile improved significantly more than the lowest (p=0.0034).
- No such relationship in 5 Hz or bilateral protocols — the effect is specific to the match between the brain's rhythm and the stimulation frequency.
- Core independent evidence that fixed 10 Hz TMS advantages patients whose alpha happens to sit near 10 Hz — and penalizes everyone else.
Aberrant EEG functional connectivity and EEG power spectra in resting state post-traumatic stress disorder: a sLORETA study
Date published
October 2014
Publication
Biological Psychology
Authors
Imperatori C, Farina B, Quintiliani MI, Onofri A, Castelli Gattinara P, Lepore M, Gnoni V, Mazzucchi E, Contardi A, Della Marca G
Key Takeaways
- Resting-state EEG source analysis (sLORETA) comparing 17 PTSD patients with 17 matched healthy controls.
- PTSD patients showed a widespread increase of theta activity in parietal and frontal regions and altered alpha-band connectivity over posterior areas.
- Independent evidence that PTSD carries measurable resting-state EEG signatures — the physiological substrate an EEG-guided treatment reads and targets.
The relationship between brain oscillatory activity and therapeutic effectiveness of transcranial magnetic stimulation in the treatment of major depressive disorder
Date published
February 2013
Publication
Frontiers in Human Neuroscience
Authors
Leuchter AF, Cook IA, Jin Y, Phillips B
Key Takeaways
- Mechanistic review: rTMS treats depression by entraining and resetting thalamocortical oscillators, restoring the brain's intrinsic rhythms — the theoretical foundation for frequency-personalized stimulation.
- Proposes that effectiveness should improve when stimulation is synchronized to a patient's individual alpha frequency rather than delivered at a fixed rate for all patients.
- Co-authored by Yi Jin, originator of the individualized alpha-frequency approach on which MeRT is built.
Effects of alpha rhythm-guided repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation on sleep and quality of life outcomes in autistic children: A chart review
Date published
Publication
Research in Autism
Authors
Ezedinma U, Jones E, Burgess S, Campbell G, Fjaagesund S, Metse A, Downer T, Oprescu F
Key Takeaways
- Retrospective chart review of 36 autistic children (ages 3–17) treated with nine sessions of alpha rhythm-guided rTMS (the MeRT protocol).
- Total score on the Children's Sleep Habits Questionnaire improved significantly (p=0.035), with significant gains in the sleep duration (p=0.035), night waking (p=0.050), and daytime sleepiness (p=0.026) subdomains.
- Sleep gains emerged after a short treatment course, consistent with sleep improvement as an early indicator of treatment response.
- Extends the same group's randomized-trial findings into routine clinical practice.