"Over the last decade, clinics have popped up across Southern California and beyond advertising something called magnetic e-resonance therapy, or MERT, as a therapy for autism. Developed by the Newport Beach-based company Wave Neuroscience, MERT is based on transcranial magnetic stimulation, a type of brain stimulation that's approved by the Food and Drug Administration to treat depression, obsessive-compulsive disorder, migraines and smoking addiction."
"But when such treatments are offered to vulnerable people, a group of researchers argue in a new peer-reviewed in the medical journal Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation, they should be evidence-based, clearly explained to patients and priced in a way that reflects the likelihood that they will work as advertised. Most clinics advertising off-label TMS as a therapy for autism don't meet those standards, the researchers say."
Magnetic e-resonance therapy (MERT), developed by Wave Neuroscience and based on transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS), is being marketed by clinics as a treatment for autism. Clinics claim improvements in sleep, emotional regulation, and communication and often charge $10,000 or more for a six-week course. The FDA has not approved MERT for autism. Off-label use of drugs and devices is legal and common, but ethical recommendations urge that off-label TMS for vulnerable populations be evidence-based, clearly explained to patients, and priced to reflect realistic likelihoods of benefit. Most clinics offering off-label TMS for autism fail to meet those standards.
#mert #transcranial-magnetic-stimulation #autism-treatment #off-label-prescribing #ethical-guidelines
Read at Los Angeles Times
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