Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation in Veterans With PTSD

January 20, 2026 updated by: Bradley Watts, White River Junction Veterans Affairs Medical Center

Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation in Veterans With PTSD: A Pilot Study to Examine Mechanism of Effect

With this research investigators hope to begin to understand how rTMS can improve posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms. TMS improves PTSD through two interrelated mechanisms: change in brain limbic system function and change in systemic inflammatory activation. Participants who decide to join this study, will receive ten rTMS treatments. All participants will undergo a 40-minute rTMS procedure with a member of the study team 10 times over 2-4 weeks. Participants will undergo fMRI scans of the head in order to help researchers better understand potential effects of rTMS on brain activity. In addition, participants will be asked to give two breath and blood samples to look for signs of general inflammation.

Study Overview

Status

Recruiting

Conditions

Intervention / Treatment

Study Type

Interventional

Enrollment (Estimated)

20

Phase

  • Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Contact

Study Contact Backup

Study Locations

  • United States
    • Vermont
      • White River Junction, Vermont, United States, 05001
        • Recruiting
        • White River Junction VA Hospital
        • Contact:
        • Principal Investigator:
          • Bradley Watts,MD, MPH
        • Sub-Investigator:
          • Brian Shiner MD, MPH

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Ages Eligible for Study

  • Adult
  • Older Adult

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Age between 19 and 70
  • Eligible for VA healthcare
  • Moderate to severe PTSD as determined by a total score of at least 25 on the CAPS within 7 days of randomization.
  • Agree to have CAPS audio recorded.
  • Ability to obtain a Motor Threshold using the TMS device during screening.
  • If female with childbearing potential, use of acceptable method of birth control (i.e., use of contraceptives, abstinence).
  • Able to read, understand, and sign the informed consent document.

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Pregnant or lactating woman.
  • MRI is contraindicated
  • Current use of clozapine (any dose) or bupropion (more than 300mg per day).
  • Cardiac pacemaker or implantable defibrillator.
  • Presence of any metal object in the head, including cochlear implants, but excluding dental work in the mouth.
  • Significant central nervous system disorder (stroke, brain mass, epilepsy).
  • Seizure in past one year.
  • Current psychosis or mania.
  • Significant suicidal ideation.
  • Unstable medical conditions.
  • Current alcohol or substance use disorder (except nicotine) that interferes with the patient's ability to participate.
  • CPT or PE for PTSD in the past 2 months.
  • Changes in Fluoxetine, Paroxetine, Sertraline, or Venlafaxine in the past 2 months.
  • Color blind
  • Currently participating in other research studies.
  • Aneurysm Clip
  • Ocular foreign body (e.g., metal shavings)
  • Any implanted device (pumps, infusion devices, etc.)
  • Shrapnel injuries or metal fragments

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Treatment
  • Allocation: N/A
  • Interventional Model: Single Group Assignment
  • Masking: None (Open Label)

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm
Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: Participants receiving open label trial of TMS
Device: Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation
10 sessions of low frequency rTMS (1Hz) applied to the right dorsolateral prefrontal cortex.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Frequency and intensity of PTSD symptoms as assessed by the CAPS-5
Time Frame: From enrollment to the end of treatment at 3 months
The CAPS is a clinician-administered scale of PTSD symptoms, which queries the frequency and intensity of symptoms of PTSD
From enrollment to the end of treatment at 3 months
20 item self-report of PTSD symptoms assessed by PCL-5
Time Frame: From enrollment to the end of treatment at 3 months
It asks participants to rate the severity of each of the 20 symptoms of PTSD in DSM-5
From enrollment to the end of treatment at 3 months

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
A quick self-reported and self administered inventory of depressive symptoms (QIDS-16-SR)
Time Frame: From the baseline to the end of the study at 3 months
This is a self-reported, self- administered scale of depressive symptoms.
From the baseline to the end of the study at 3 months

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

White River Junction Veterans Affairs Medical Center

Investigators

  • Principal Investigator: Bradley Watts, US Department of Veterans Affairs

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Estimated)

January 15, 2026

Primary Completion (Estimated)

January 1, 2027

Study Completion (Estimated)

January 1, 2027

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

January 9, 2026

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

January 9, 2026

First Posted (Actual)

January 13, 2026

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

January 21, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

January 20, 2026

Last Verified

January 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

  • 1869595

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

Yes

product manufactured in and exported from the U.S.

Yes

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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