Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS) during pregnancy: a fetal risk factor

Australas Psychiatry. 2021 Apr;29(2):226-229. doi: 10.1177/1039856221992636. Epub 2021 Mar 2.

Abstract

Objective: To examine reports of Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS) during pregnancy for evidence of fetal risk.

Method: PubMed was used to locate relevant literature for the years 1998-2020 and reference lists were examined for materials not located electronically.

Results: Ten reports were located dealing with 67 births over 20 years. Stimulation was applied is all trimesters, at low and high frequency, and as intermittent theta-burst stimulation. No mother or baby experienced a serious event.

Conclusions: Certainty awaits large, standardized studies. However, the available reports provide no evidence that TMS to mother during pregnancy has detrimental effects on the fetus.

Keywords: major depressive disorder; pregnancy; safety; transcranial magnetic stimulation.

MeSH terms

  • Female
  • Fetus*
  • Humans
  • Pregnancy
  • Risk Factors
  • Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation*