FDA Clears SAINT Rapid-Acting Brain Stimulation Approach for Those Suffering From Resistant Major Depression
Nolan R. Williams, M.D.
On September 6, 2022, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration cleared the way for marketing of a rapid-acting brain-stimulation approach for major depressive disorder pioneered by Nolan Williams, M.D., of Stanford University, and colleagues. In the SAINT protocol, advanced imaging technology is used to individualize targeting of non-invasive stimulation to part of the brain’s cortex, and significantly more non-invasive stimulation is delivered in much less time than is standard in TMS (transcranial magnetic stimulation), the most often used non-invasive treatment protocol now being offered to patients with depression.