Brain stimulation & the treatment of refractory psychiatric disorders.

Many patients with psychiatric disorders are refractory to current treatments, prompting a search for novel therapies. Based on the efficacy of electroconvulsive therapy, there is interest in developing other brain stimulation methods in psychiatry. Alternatives include vagal nerve stimulation, repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation and deep brain stimulation. This paper reviews these methods, highlighting strategies currently being used and developed at Washington University and Barnes-Jewish Hospital in St. Louis.