Depression is one of the most common mental health conditions in the world, affecting hundreds of millions of people. It can cause deep sadness, loss of interest in life, sleep problems, low energy, and difficulty thinking clearly.
For many people, antidepressant medications and talk therapy can help. However, a large number of patients do not improve enough with these standard treatments. This condition is often called treatment-resistant depression, and it can leave people feeling hopeless after trying many medications without success.
For these individuals, doctors have turned to a treatment called transcranial magnetic stimulation, or TMS. This therapy does not involve surgery or drugs. Instead, it uses gentle magnetic pulses applied to the scalp to stimulate areas of the brain that control mood.
Scientists believe that depression is linked to reduced activity in certain brain regions, and TMS helps reactivate those areas. The treatment is usually safe and does not cause the memory problems sometimes linked to older therapies like electroconvulsive therapy.
Traditional TMS treatment requires a major time commitment. Patients normally need to visit a clinic five days a week for six to eight weeks.
Each session lasts less than an hour, but the travel and daily schedule can be difficult for people who work, care for family members, or have health limitations. Even though many insurance plans now cover TMS, the time burden prevents some patients from completing treatment.
Researchers at UCLA Health wanted to find out whether TMS could be delivered in a much shorter period without losing its effectiveness.
They tested an accelerated approach known as five-by-five, or “5×5.” Instead of one session per day, patients received five sessions a day for five days in a row. This allowed the full course of treatment to be completed in just one week.
The study involved 175 people with treatment-resistant depression. Most participants followed the standard six-week schedule, while a smaller group received the accelerated version.
When the researchers compared the results, both groups showed meaningful improvement in depression symptoms. The accelerated treatment worked nearly as well as the traditional approach, suggesting that a shorter schedule could be a realistic option for some patients.
An especially interesting finding was that some patients who did not feel better right away after the five-day treatment later showed clear improvement.
When researchers checked again two to four weeks later, these patients had significantly lower depression scores. This delayed response suggests that the brain may continue adjusting even after the treatment sessions end. It also means patients should not lose hope if they do not notice immediate changes.
Although the accelerated approach showed promise, the traditional six-week treatment still performed slightly better in some long-term outcomes.
The researchers also noted that the study was not a fully randomized clinical trial, which is considered the strongest type of medical research. Larger and more carefully controlled studies will be needed to confirm whether the faster method works equally well for most patients.
TMS therapy is already used for people whose depression does not respond to medication, and scientists are now exploring its potential for other conditions such as obsessive-compulsive disorder, anxiety, and chronic pain. As understanding of the brain grows, treatments that directly target brain activity may become more common.
The findings from this study offer new hope, especially for people who cannot commit to weeks of daily clinic visits. A one-week treatment could make TMS accessible to more patients and reduce the burden on families and healthcare systems.
However, doctors will still need to decide which patients are best suited for the accelerated approach and ensure that safety and effectiveness remain high.
Overall, this research shows that depression treatment is entering a new era where brain-based therapies can be tailored to patients’ needs and schedules.
While more studies are required, the possibility of faster relief could change how doctors treat severe depression in the future. For people who have struggled for years without success, even a small step toward quicker and more accessible treatment can make a life-changing difference.
If you care about mental health, please read studies about 6 foods you can eat to improve mental health, and B vitamins could help prevent depression and anxiety.
For more health information, please see recent studies about how dairy foods may influence depression risk, and results showing Omega-3 fats may help reduce depression.
The study is published in Journal of Affective Disorders.
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