Depressed mood, index finger force and motor cortex stimulation: A transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) study [An article from: Biological Psychology]

This digital document is a journal article from Biological Psychology, published by Elsevier in 2006. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Media Library immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Description:
The present study utilized transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) of the motor cortex to understand basic motor processes associated with depressive symptoms independent of cognitive requirements or diagnostic category. To assess the integrity of the basic cortical-spinal-motor circuit associated with depressed mood, TMS to the motor cortex was used to initiate motor evoked potentials (MEPs) in forearm EMG and force production measured in the right (dominant) index finger. While at rest, a group with more depressive symptoms showed less force response in the index finger following stimulations compared with a group endorsing less depressive symptoms. A negative correlation between force response in the index finger at baseline (rest) following stimulation and the Beck depression inventory indicated that depressive mood symptom elevations were associated with less response to stimulations. The results argue for a greater importance placed on the relationship between depressive mood symptoms and basic motor processes.