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PRESS RELEASES

Unique Type of MRI Scan Shows Promise in Treating Bipolar Disorder

*FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE*:
January 7th, 2004

Unique Type of MRI Scan Shows Promise in Treating Bipolar Disorder

*Belmont, MA* - A rarely used combination of magnetic fields generated
with a conventional MRI scanner immediately and significantly improved
the mood of subjects with bipolar disorder, according to researchers at
McLean Hospital in Belmont, Mass.

"This is a very unusual MRI exam used for the first time in this study.
We were surprised at our good fortune in discovering this effect and we
are excited about the initial findings," says Michael Rohan, imaging
physicist in McLean's Brain Imaging Center.

The study published in the January 1 issue of the American Journal of
Psychiatry had a surprising start. Rohan explains, "We were using MRI to
investigate the effectiveness of certain medications in bipolar patients
and noticed that many came out of the MRI feeling much better than when
they went in. We decided to investigate further."

Researchers theorized that one type of magnetic pulse they were using
was having the positive effect. "This was purely accidental. We just
happened to use this set of magnetic gradients, which we think somehow
matches the natural firing rhythm of brain cells." Technically this kind
of scan is called EP-MRSI, or Echo-Planar Magnetic Resonance
Spectroscopic Imaging. After realizing they may be observing a real
effect, researchers expanded the study to include sham EP-MRSI scans
with bipolar subjects, normal EP-MRSI scans in healthy subjects, in
addition to EP-MRSI scans in bipolar subjects.

The results showed 23 out of 30 bipolar subjects who received the actual
EP-MRSI tests reported mood improvement, indicating a 77 percent
response rate. In addition, subjects who were not on medication showed
even greater response (100 percent) compared to the response rate of
those on medication (63 percent). These results were not seen in the
other two groups, those with bipolar disorder receiving sham EP-MRSI and
healthy individuals receiving EP-MRSI.

The authors note that one other test using electromagnetic energy has
previously shown some positive effect in subjects with depression. This
rTMS, or repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation test, was
originally developed in the 1980s to test nerve function. It uses a
magnetic device that is held next to the head. Studies using this
treatment for depression typically result in a 40 percent to 50 percent
response rate. However, the McLean authors note that this test uses a
much stronger magnetic field that can be painful to the patient.

The magnetic field the McLean researchers are using is approximately 200
times weaker than rTMS and like a standard MRI, the patients feel
nothing. Researchers are currently developing a tabletop device that
delivers the precise magnetic field originally used in this study with
the MRI scanner. Downsizing the machinery is expected to prove more
efficient and cost effective in the long run.

"We are also planning a much larger clinical study using this smaller
device to further test this effect," adds Rohan. Researchers believe one
day such a device may be used during perhaps a 20-minute nap at a
doctor's office.