Deep repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) of dorsomedial prefrontal cortex improves social relating in autism spectrum disorder
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1
Deakin University, Cognitive Neuroscience Unit, School of Psychology, Australia
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2
Monash University, Monash Alfred Psychiatry Research Centre, Australia
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3
Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Monash Alfred Psychiatry Research Centre, Israel
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4
The Alfred, Department of Psychiatry, Australia
Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is characterised by impairments in social relating. A dominant model of ASD suggests that these social relating impairments are a result of a reduced capacity for theory of mind or mentalising, which itself has been linked to a neural network that includes dorsomedial prefrontal cortex (dmPFC). As individuals with ASD show reduced activity within dmPFC, we investigated whether modulation of this region with repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) would improve social relating and mentalising in adults diagnosed with ASD. In a double-blind, sham-controlled clinical trial, adults with ASD underwent ten 15-minute sessions of high-frequency (5 Hz) deep rTMS to dmPFC over a two week period. Assessments of social relating and mentalising were conducted before the first deep rTMS treatment, immediately after the last deep rTMS treatment, and one-month after the last deep rTMS treatment. Participants in the active deep rTMS condition (n = 15) showed a significant reduction in social relating symptoms from pre-treatment to one-month post-treatment, and also showed lower social relating symptoms compared to those undergoing sham stimulation (n = 13) at both post-treatment assessments. There was also a significant reduction in social anxiety for those in the active deep rTMS condition. Experimental measures of mentalising, however, revealed no group differences. This research provides initial support for the use of non-invasive brain stimulation to improve social aspects of ASD. We are currently examining whether an extended stimulation protocol can yield more pronounced clinical benefits, and whether we can detect changes in glucose metabolism within social cognitive networks following deep rTMS.
*This study is published in Brain Stimulation, http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1935861X13002994
Keywords:
Prefrontal Cortex,
Theory of Mind,
social cognition,
Autism Spectrum Disorder,
repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation
Conference:
XII International Conference on Cognitive Neuroscience (ICON-XII), Brisbane, Queensland, Australia, 27 Jul - 31 Jul, 2014.
Presentation Type:
Poster
Topic:
Emotional and Social Processes
Citation:
Enticott
P,
Fitzgibbon
B,
Kennedy
H,
Arnold
S,
Elliot
D,
Peachey
A,
Zangen
A and
Fitzgerald
P
(2015). Deep repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) of dorsomedial prefrontal cortex improves social relating in autism spectrum disorder.
Conference Abstract:
XII International Conference on Cognitive Neuroscience (ICON-XII).
doi: 10.3389/conf.fnhum.2015.217.00174
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Received:
19 Feb 2015;
Published Online:
24 Apr 2015.
*
Correspondence:
Prof. Peter Enticott, Deakin University, Cognitive Neuroscience Unit, School of Psychology, Burwood, Australia, peter.enticott@deakin.edu.au