¹Wahrendorff Klinikum, Research & Development, Sehnde, Germany

Background: Neurostimulation procedures have been used for some time to treat neurological and neuropsychiatric disorders. Several methods of non-invasive brain stimulation have been investigated, including transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS), transcranial electrical stimulation (tES), and transcranial pulse stimulation (TPS). While TMS and tES have been studied more extensively, particularly in relation to Alzheimer's disease (AD), there is an urgent need for further research into TPS. Some studies have demonstrated favourable outcomes when these methods were employed. However, these methods have yet to be incorporated into clinical practice, largely due to the inability to conclusively assess and confirm their effectiveness, which is influenced by a number of factors.

Aims & Objectives: The use of TPS as a neurostimulation method will be presented. The results of a recent study that used TPS on patients with mild to moderate AD will also be presented. The study aimed to investigate whether cognitive performance increased significantly and depressive symptom severity reduced significantly.

Method: The cognitive performance (MoCA) and depressive symptoms (GDS) of patients with mild or moderate AD, either early- or late-onset, will be assessed at baseline (t1), three months (t2) and six months (t3) following treatment with TPS. For this longitudinal study, participants will be recruited from an outpatient setting at a specialised psychiatric-psychotherapeutic clinic (Wahrendorff Clinic) in Lower Saxony, Germany

Results: Repeated measures ANOVA; Mean scores MoCA t1 = 14,2 vs. t2 = 14,3 vs. t3 = 14,5 (F(2, 40) = 6.760, n.s.). Mean scores GDS t1 = 9,7 vs. t2 = 7,7 vs. t3 = 6,5 (F(2, 80 = .178, p ˂ .05). n = 41. Preliminary data.

Discussion & Conclusions: As in other studies, remarkable effects were observed in patients with mild to moderate AD when TPS was used. The results suggest that cognitive performance can be stabilised and depressive symptoms can be reduced. However, it is important to note that the results are based on a relatively small sample size and lack control conditions, which may limit the generalisability of the findings. Further research is required to evaluate the effectiveness of TPS treatment for AD and to assess the potential suitability of neurostimulation as an additional therapy to complement previous drug and non-drug approaches.