A survey of patient acceptability of repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) during pregnancy

ObjectiveGiven the data that depression is common during pregnancy and that pregnant women prefer non-medication treatment options, we hypothesize repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) may be a treatment option. Given the novelty of TMS, we sought to assess whether patient acceptability would be a barrier to enrolling pregnant women in TMS studies.MethodsIn Study 1, 500 pregnant women were surveyed in an outpatient, urban obstetrics clinic using the Edinburgh Depression Rating Scale (EPDS) and a treatment acceptability survey. In Study 2, 51 women were surveyed with the EPDS and acceptability survey using an informational video to increase participant knowledge about TMS.ResultsApproximately 25% of participants had an EPDS score of ≥ 12 in both studies. Psychotherapy was identified as the most acceptable treatment option. TMS was considered an unacceptable treatment option to virtually all women before the informational video. After the video, 15.7% considered TMS an acceptable treatment option.ConclusionPsychotherapy is the most acceptable treatment option for depression to pregnant women. Increasing participant knowledge about TMS increased its acceptability significantly. Large-scale multi-center trials are needed for confirmation of these results.