Journal of Affective Disorders
Volume 66, Issue 2 , Pages 103-109, October 2001

Functional cerebral asymmetry in affective disorders: new facts contributed by transcranial magnetic stimulation

  • Mauro Garcia-Toro

      Affiliations

    • Department of Psychiatry, Complejo Hospitalario GESMA, Mallorca, Spain
    • Corresponding Author InformationCorresponding author. Complejo Hospitalario GESMA, C/Jesús 40, 07003 Palma de Mallorca, Spain. Tel.: +34-971-761-612; fax: +34-971-761-209
    • ,
  • Jose Manuel Montes

      Affiliations

    • Department of Psychiatry, Hospital Universitario Prı́ncipe de Asturias de Alcalá de Henares, Madrid, Spain
    • ,
  • Juan Antonio Talavera

      Affiliations

    • School of Engineering, Arts and Industries, Catholic Institute, Department of Social Psychology, Autonoma University, Madrid, Spain

Received 1 January 2000; accepted 8 June 2000.

Abstract 

A growing body of experimental data usually finds a slightly lower activation in the left hemisphere than in the right in depressive syndromes, whereas the opposite occurs in mania. Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) seems to have a distinctive lateralized effect with manic or depressed patients. These clinical findings provide new elements for discussion of the significance of unbalanced hemispherical activation as a biological substrate in affective disorders. Based on these data and on the theories of chaos and complexity, a hypothesis for the physiopathology of affective disorders and the functional mechanism of TMS is proposed. This hypothesis is in agreement with valence theory.

Keywords:  Transcranial magnetic stimulation, Mania, Depression, Chaos, Complexity

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PII: S0165-0327(00)00276-7

Journal of Affective Disorders
Volume 66, Issue 2 , Pages 103-109, October 2001

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