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Zapping Cocaine Addiction
Article

Zapping Cocaine Addiction

Powerful magnetic pulses that modify brain activity may loosen the drug’s grip.

Meredith Wadman
Science, 2017
References: Chen et al. (2013) , Hanlon et al. (2017)
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Editorial Rating

8

Qualities

  • Scientific
  • Eye Opening
  • Engaging

Recommendation

With gut-wrenching tales about long-term cocaine addicts, Science magazine journalist Meredith Wadman explains how noninvasive, repetitive magnetic stimulation to the brain may change addiction treatment. Now clinical trials will determine the safety and efficacy of repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) in people who have been unable to kick their cocaine habit. getAbstract recommends this article to anyone who is a cocaine addict, knows someone who is, or wants to understand how rTMS treats cocaine addiction.

Take-Aways

  • One million people in the United States and 13 million globally are cocaine addicts. The US Food and Drug Administration has not approved any cocaine addiction treatment.
  • Clinical trials underway in the United States and Mexico will test the efficacy of repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) in treating cocaine addiction.
  • The treatment delivers short, repeating bursts of magnetic pulses to the brain through a device mounted on the patient’s head.

About the Author

Science writer Meredith Wadman specializes in neuroscience. She received her medical degree from the University of Oxford, United Kingdom, and her master’s degree from Columbia Journalism School.

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