ClinicalTrials.gg
TerminatedNCT06462820Updated Mar 24, 2025

SAINT for MDD in an Inpatient Setting Follow-on

A Phase 2/3 interventional study of Active SAINT Stimulation and Sham SAINT Stimulation in Major Depressive Disorder, Major Depressive Episode and Suicidal Ideation, sponsored by Magnus Medical. Terminated at 4 sites in United States. Open to participants aged 18 Years to 75 Years. Per ClinicalTrials.gov, last updated 2025-03-24.

Sponsored by Magnus Medical · Phase 2/3, Interventional, and Treatment

Why this study was terminated
Funding discontinued.

From the registry’s dates

  • Primary completion was Mar 2025, 1 year 8 months ago, and no results have been posted to the registry.
Phase
Phase 2/3
Study type
Interventional
Enrollment
2
Allocation
Randomized
Ages
18 Years to 75 Years
Sex
All
01

Study summary

Randomized, multi-site, sham-controlled, double-blinded study

Read the detailed description

This multi-site, double-blind, randomized, sham-controlled mechanistic trial aims to test the effects of Magnus Neuromodulation System (MNS) with Stanford Accelerated Intermittent Neuromodulation Therapy (SAINT) Technology for the treatment of depression and suicidal cognitions in psychiatrically hospitalized patients with Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) and active suicidal ideation (SI). This will be accomplished by applying the MNS with SAINT protocol (10 applications per day to a customized target within the left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (L-DLPFC) identified with fMRI for five consecutive days) and measuring changes in depressive symptoms and suicidality at baseline and immediate-post visit.

Th clinical hypothesis is that participants receiving per-protocol active SAINT stimulation will demonstrate a significant difference in Montgomery-Asberg Depression Rating Scale (MADRS) scores/remission rates at the immediate post treatment visit, compared to those who receive per protocol sham SAINT stimulation.

The primary objective of this study is to determine the efficacy of active SAINT vs. sham SAINT in reducing symptoms of depression as measured by the MADRS.

The study will enroll approximately 100 participants and employ a two-arm design with 50 subjects per arm. The target population is adults of all genders and ethnicities who are between 18 and 75 years of age with a diagnosis of treatment-resistant MDD experiencing a current Major Depressive Episode, with active suicidal ideation, and who are otherwise in good general health. Participants must be without contraindications to Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) or transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) and must be able to attend all study visits.

This study will deliver both active and sham SAINT via a MagPro X100 edition (MagVenture, Skovlunde, Denmark) TMS device equipped with a Cool-B65 A/P coil. The stimulation paradigm consists of 10 daily sessions (50 total over 5-days) of MNS with SAINT stimulation (3-pulse 50-Hz bursts at 5-Hz for 2-second trains, with trains every 10 seconds), delivered with 50-minute inter-session intervals (10-minute sessions, 50-minutes in between sessions). Stimulation will be delivered at 90% of the resting motor threshold (with depth correction to account for the distance between the scalp and cortex). An operator entered code (derived from the study EDC) will instruct the device to deliver active or sham magnetic stimulation.

02

Conditions studied

  • Major Depressive Disorder
  • Major Depressive Episode
  • Suicidal Ideation

Keywords

  • Suicidality
  • Neuromodulation
  • Transcranial magnetic stimulation
  • Depression
  • Intermittent theta burst stimulation
03

In context

Depressive Disorder, Major

3,041 studies on the registry are indexed under Depressive Disorder, Major; 588 are open to participants now.

This study's enrollment of 2 is below the median of 79 across 2,530 interventional studies indexed under Depressive Disorder, Major.

Browse Depressive Disorder, Major studies →

Lead sponsor

Magnus Medical is the lead sponsor of 4 studies on the registry; 1 is open to participants now.

Counted across the registry records on this site, refreshed daily.

04

Who can participate

Ages eligible
18 Years to 75 Years
Sexes eligible
All
Accepts healthy volunteers
No

Go through the criteria one by one — yes, no or not sure — and take the list to your doctor or the study team. Kept in this browser only.

Inclusion criteria

  1. Adults of all genders between the ages of 18 and 75 years at the time of screening, who have failed to receive satisfactory improvement from prior antidepressant medication in the current episode
  2. Concurrently enrolled in the NIH multi-site trial titled "The Effects of SAINT® Neuromodulation System on Explicit and Implicit Suicidal Cognition"
  3. Able to read, understand, and provide written, dated prior to screening. Proficiency in English sufficient to complete questionnaires/follow instructions during fMRI assessments and SAINT treatments
  4. Stated willingness to comply with all study procedures including availability for the duration of the study and to communicate with study personnel about adverse events and other information
  5. Currently diagnosed with Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) and meets criteria for a current Major Depressive Episode (MDE) according to the criteria defined in the Diagnosis and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition, Text Revision ()
  6. Medical records confirming a history of moderate to severe treatment- resistance as defined by a score of 7-14 on the Maudsley Staging Method153 (MSM)
  7. Endorses clinically significant explicit suicidal cognitions (score ≥ 9 on the M-SSI and score ≥ 6 on the BSS self-report)
  8. MADRS score of ≥20 at screening (visit 1)
  9. rTMS/iTBS naive
  10. Access to ongoing psychiatric care before and after completion of the study
  11. Access to clinical rTMS after hospital discharge
  12. In good general health, as evidenced by medical history
  13. For females of : use of highly effective for at least 1 month prior to screening and agreement to use such a method during study participation. Must have a negative urine pregnancy test prior to enrollment

Exclusion criteria

Exclusion Criteria:

  1. Pregnancy as confirmed by a positive urine pregnancy test
  2. The presence or diagnosis of a prominent anxiety disorder, personality disorder, or dysthymia which in the Investigator's opinion is predominant to MDD
  3. Depressed mood/dysphoria as a result of an illness other than MDD (e.g. gender dysphoria)
  4. Current severe insomnia (must sleep a minimum of 5 hours each night before stimulation)
  5. Current mania or psychosis
  6. A history of Bipolar Affective Disorder or Primary Psychotic Disorder
  7. Autism Spectrum disorder or Intellectual Disability
  8. A diagnosis of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD)
  9. Current moderate or severe substance use disorder or demonstrating signs of acute substance withdrawal
  10. Urine screening test positive for illicit substances
  11. Any history of ECT (greater than 8 sessions) without meeting responder criteria
  12. Recent (during the current depressive episode) or concurrent use of a rapid acting antidepressant agent (i.e., ketamine or a course of ECT)
  13. History of significant neurologic disease, including dementia, Parkinson's or Huntington's disease, brain tumor, unexpected seizure/epilepsy disorder, subdural hematoma, multiple sclerosis, or history of significant head trauma
  14. Untreated or insufficiently treated endocrine disorder
  15. to receiving rTMS (e.g., metal in head, history of seizure, known brain lesion)
  16. Contraindications to MRI (ferromagnetic metal in their body)
  17. Any current or past history of any physical condition which, in the investigator's opinion, might put the subject at risk or interfere with study results interpretation
  18. Treatment with another drug or other intervention within the study period
  19. Depth-adjusted SAINT® treatment dose > 65% maximum stimulator output (MSO)
  20. Any other condition deemed by the PI to interfere with the study or increase risk to the participant
Terms in these criteria, in plain language(7)

Underlined terms in the criteria open these too. Explained by clinicaltrials.gg, not part of the registry record. The study team decides who can take part.

Informed consent

Before you join, the study team explains what taking part involves — its purpose, what happens, the risks and possible benefits — and answers your questions, so you can decide freely. Consent is usually recorded on a form (the informed consent form, ICF) signed by you or, where the law allows, by someone legally authorised to decide for you.

You can keep asking questions during the study, you are told of new information that matters, and you can choose to leave at any time.

Clinically significant

Judged by the study doctor to matter for your health or for the study. It is a doctor’s decision, so ask the study team if you are unsure whether something counts.

DSM diagnostic criteria

The American Psychiatric Association’s manual of mental health diagnoses. DSM-5 (2013, revised as DSM-5-TR in 2022) replaced DSM-IV, and some studies still name the older edition. “Meets DSM criteria for …” means diagnosed by that edition’s diagnostic criteria, usually by a clinician in an interview.

Reproductive potential

Able to have children. For women this usually means from the first period until menopause, unless permanently unable to through surgery; for men, unless permanently sterile. Read who the line is about — participants, women, men, or their partners.

Criteria about it usually ask for contraception during the study and for a time after it.

Contraception

Ways of preventing pregnancy. “Highly effective” methods fail less than 1% of the time a year when used correctly — for example an IUD or an implant.

Criteria usually say which methods count and how long to keep using them after the last dose, sometimes for male participants too. Some studies accept a partner’s vasectomy if it was confirmed successful and that person is the participant’s only sexual partner.

Contraindication

A reason a treatment, test or procedure should not be given to a particular person, such as an allergy, another illness or a medicine they take.

Investigational drug or device

A drug or device being studied in a clinical trial.

It may be new, or already approved and being studied for another use, dose or form. Criteria often leave out people who took part in another study of one within a recent period, commonly 30 days or five half-lives.

05

Study design

Phase
Phase 2 / Phase 3
Primary purpose
Treatment
Allocation
Randomized
Intervention model
Parallel assignment
Masking
Quadruple (Participant, Care provider, Investigator, Outcomes assessor)
Enrollment
2 participants (actual)

Study arms

  • Active comparator
    Active SAINT Stimulation

    Active SAINT stimulation will be applied to the left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC)

    Device: Active SAINT Stimulation

  • Sham comparator
    Sham Stimulation

    Sham (non-active) stimulation will be applied to the left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC)

    Device: Sham SAINT Stimulation

Interventions

  • DeviceActive SAINT Stimulation

    Participants who are randomly assigned to this group will receive active SAINT targeted to the left DLPFC. Stimulation intensity will be standardized at 90% of resting motor threshold (adjusted for cortical depth). Stimulation will be delivered using the Magventure Magpro X100 TMS system with the Cool-B65 A/P coil.

  • DeviceSham SAINT Stimulation

    Participants who are randomly assigned to this group will receive sham stimulation targeted to the left DLPFC. Sham stimulation will be delivered using the Magventure Magpro X100 TMS system with the Cool-B65 A/P coil.

06

What researchers measure

Primary outcomes

  1. Montgomery-Asberg Depression Rating Scale (MADRS) Remission Rates

    Ten item diagnostic questionnaire which psychiatrists use to measure the severity of depressive symptoms in patients with mood disorders. We will assess the difference in MADRS scores/remission rates between the per-protocol active SAINT group compared to those who received per-protocol sham treatment at the immediate post treatment visit.

    Time frame: Screening/Baseline, Immediate Post Visit

Secondary outcomes

  1. Modified Scale for Suicidal Ideation (M-SSI)

    A revised version of the Scale for Suicidal Ideation (SSI; Beck et al., 1979). The MSSI is an 18 item scale that contains 13 items from the SSI and 5 additional items. We will assess the mean change in the M-SSI from baseline to immediate post treatment visits between the per-protocol active SAINT group compared to those who received per-protocol sham treatment.

    Time frame: Screening/Baseline, Immediate Post Visit

  2. Columbia Suicide Severity Rating Scale (C-SSRS)

    We will use both the Lifetime and the Since Last Visit versions of the C-SSRS to assess suicidality from baseline to immediate post treatment between the per-protocol active SAINT group compared to those who received per-protocol sham treatment.

    Time frame: Screening/Baseline, Immediate Post Visit

  3. Montgomery-Asberg Depression Rating Scale (MADRS) Response Rates

    We will assess the difference in MADRS response rates (reduction \>50% of MADRS baseline score) between the per-protocol active SAINT group compared to those who received per-protocol sham treatment at the immediate post treatment visit.

    Time frame: Screening/Baseline, Immediate Post Visit

07

Study locations

4 sites
  • University of Iowa
    Iowa City, Iowa 52242, United States
  • Weill Cornell Medicine
    Manhattan, New York 10021, United States
  • Medical University of South Carolina
    Charleston, South Carolina 29425, United States
  • University of Texas, Ausin - Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences
    Austin, Texas 78712, United States
08

References and documents

Publications

  • Cole EJ, Phillips AL, Bentzley BS, Stimpson KH, Nejad R, Barmak F, Veerapal C, Khan N, Cherian K, Felber E, Brown R, Choi E, King S, Pankow H, Bishop JH, Azeez A, Coetzee J, Rapier R, Odenwald N, Carreon D, Hawkins J, Chang M, Keller J, Raj K, DeBattista C, Jo B, Espil FM, Schatzberg AF, Sudheimer KD, Williams NR. Stanford Neuromodulation Therapy (SNT): A Double-Blind Randomized Controlled Trial. Am J Psychiatry. 2022 Feb;179(2):132-141. doi: 10.1176/appi.ajp.2021.20101429. Epub 2021 Oct 29. PubMed 34711062 ↗
  • Cole EJ, Stimpson KH, Bentzley BS, Gulser M, Cherian K, Tischler C, Nejad R, Pankow H, Choi E, Aaron H, Espil FM, Pannu J, Xiao X, Duvio D, Solvason HB, Hawkins J, Guerra A, Jo B, Raj KS, Phillips AL, Barmak F, Bishop JH, Coetzee JP, DeBattista C, Keller J, Schatzberg AF, Sudheimer KD, Williams NR. Stanford Accelerated Intelligent Neuromodulation Therapy for Treatment-Resistant Depression. Am J Psychiatry. 2020 Aug 1;177(8):716-726. doi: 10.1176/appi.ajp.2019.19070720. Epub 2020 Apr 7. PubMed 32252538 ↗
  • Williams NR, Sudheimer KD, Bentzley BS, Pannu J, Stimpson KH, Duvio D, Cherian K, Hawkins J, Scherrer KH, Vyssoki B, DeSouza D, Raj KS, Keller J, Schatzberg AF. High-dose spaced theta-burst TMS as a rapid-acting antidepressant in highly refractory depression. Brain. 2018 Mar 1;141(3):e18. doi: 10.1093/brain/awx379. No abstract available. PubMed 29415152 ↗

Individual participant data

Plan to share: No

09

Timeline

Tracking since Sep 25, 2026
ElapsedEstimatedEstimated, not yet reached

Ran from Jun 2024 to primary completion in Mar 2025, 8 months.

How these figures are worked out, and which studies are left out of them.

Registered
Jun 12, 2024
First posted
Jun 17, 2024
StartActual
Jun 30, 2024
Primary completionActual
Mar 6, 2025
CompletionActual
Mar 6, 2025
Last update
Mar 24, 2025
What these dates mean
Start.
When the first participant enrolled; while estimated, when the study expects to open to recruitment.
Primary completion.
When the last participant was examined or treated to collect data for the study's main question, its primary outcome. A study that stopped early gives the date its data collection stopped.
Completion.
When the last participant's last visit took place, for every outcome, secondary ones and side effects included: the end of the study. Often later than primary completion, sometimes the same day.
Actual and Est.
Actual means the registry says the date has happened. Est. (estimated) is a date the sponsor plans or expects. It can still move, and the sponsor is expected to change it to actual once it has passed.
No changes since tracking began. The registry record was last updated on Mar 24, 2025, before this site started recording changes on Sep 25, 2026. Its history is on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗
10

Registry details

Key details

Study ID
NCT06462820
Lead sponsor
Magnus Medical
Responsible party
Sponsor
First posted
Jun 17, 2024
Start date
Jun 30, 2024
Primary completion
Mar 6, 2025
Completion
Mar 6, 2025
Last update
Mar 24, 2025

Study contacts

Brandon Bentzley, MD
study director · Magnus Medical

Oversight

Data monitoring committee
Yes
FDA-regulated drug
No
FDA-regulated device
Yes
View the source record on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗

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This study is terminated, as verified in Oct 2024. You cannot join it, but the record below documents what was studied.

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