Transcranial magnetic stimulation of left temporoparietal cortex in three patients reporting hallucinated “voices”

Background: Prior studies suggest that auditory hallucinations of “voices” arise from activation of speech perception areas of the cerebral cortex. Low frequency transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) can reduce cortical activation. Methods: We have studied three schizophrenic patients reporting pe...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Biological psychiatry (1969) 1999-07, Vol.46 (1), p.130-132
Main Authors: Hoffman, Ralph E, Boutros, Nashaat N, Berman, Robert M, Roessler, Elizabeth, Belger, Aysenil, Krystal, John H, Charney, Dennis S
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adult
Auditory hallucinations
Biological and medical sciences
cerebral cortex
Cross-Over Studies
Double-Blind Method
Female
Hallucinations - psychology
Humans
Male
Medical sciences
Middle Aged
Miscellaneous
Parietal Lobe - physiology
Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry
Psychopathology. Psychiatry
psychosis
Schizophrenia
speech processing
Temporal Lobe - physiology
Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation
Treatments
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Summary:Background: Prior studies suggest that auditory hallucinations of “voices” arise from activation of speech perception areas of the cerebral cortex. Low frequency transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) can reduce cortical activation. Methods: We have studied three schizophrenic patients reporting persistent auditory hallucinations to determine if low frequency TMS could curtail these experiences. One hertz stimulation of left temporoparietal cortex was compared with sham stimulation using a double-blind, cross-over design. Results: All three patients demonstrated greater improvement in hallucination severity following active stimulation compared to sham stimulation. Two of the three patients reported near total cessation of hallucinations for ⩾ 2 weeks. Conclusions: TMS may advance our understanding of the mechanism and treatment of auditory hallucinations.
ISSN:0006-3223
1873-2402
DOI:10.1016/S0006-3223(98)00358-8