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Enhancing Prefrontal Oscillations and Working Memory in Early-course Schizophrenia

Enhancing Prefrontal Oscillatory Activity and Working Memory Performance With Noninvasive Brain Stimulation in Early-course Schizophrenia

Who can join

Ages 18 to 40 · All sexes

Inclusion Criteria:

1. ages 18-40 years
2. DSM diagnoses of Schizophrenia Spectrum Axis I disorders
3. a duration of less than three years from beginning of psychosis, defined by report of symptoms and/or history of treatment, based on clinical guidelines employed in our UPMC psychoses clinics in Pittsburgh.

Exclusion Criteria:

1. DSM intellectual developmental disorder
2. significant head injury
3. medical illness affecting brain structure or function
4. significant neurologic disorder (e.g. seizure disorder)
5. personal history or family history of epilepsy
6. inability to provide informed consent
7. concussion with loss of consciousness (LOC) greater than 10 minutes
8. history of electroconvulsive therapy
9. diabetes with associated seizures, loss of sensation/weakness in arms or legs, or momentary LOC
10. pregnancy or postpartum (\<6 weeks after delivery or miscarriage), as determined by self-report
11. a psychotic illness with a temporal relation to substance use or head injury.
12. current or past co-morbidity for alcohol or psychoactive substance dependence
13. substance abuse, other than cannabis and/or alcohol, within the past one year

About the study

This study will investigate the effects of intermittent Theta Burst Stimulation (iTBS) on natural oscillatory frequency of the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) and working memory in early-course schizophrenia (EC-SCZ). Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) will be used to evoke oscillatory activity, and EEG will record the responses of EC-SCZ participants. A working memory task will also be incorporated in order to determine how DLPFC natural frequency (NF) is related to working memory performance. iTBS (active or sham) will be administered, then the oscillatory activity of DLPFC and working memory performance will be reassessed. The overarching goal is to determine whether iTBS can acutely enhance the oscillatory activity of the DLPFC and to evaluate the relationship between changes in the DLPFC and working memory performance.

What is being tested

• active intermittent Theta Burst Stimulation (iTBS) (device)
• sham intermittent Theta Burst Stimulation (iTBS) (device)

Sponsor: Fabio Ferrarelli · Participants: 75 · Started: Nov 5, 2021

Contact the study team

• Sabine Janssen · Phone: 412-246-6114

Official record on ClinicalTrials.gov — NCT05102929

Locations in the U.S.

Conditions

• Schizophrenia

From ClinicalTrials.gov, data retrieved Sep 30, 2026. Each study sets its own eligibility; the study team decides who can join.