Executive Summary / Abstract - Dr Jamie Beros

Young people under the age of 25 are particularly vulnerable to mental illness, with estimates suggesting that 1 in 5 Australian youth are currently living with a mental health disorder. Our project addresses mental health treatment concerns experienced by young people: frustration in relation to dysfunctional treatment pathways, poor responses to antidepressant medication, and significant side effects. These issues highlight the urgent need to provide more treatment options accompanied by a clear pathway for a personalised approach to selecting a first line treatment. Our team is made up of basic and clinical researchers, psychiatrists, a creative artist and biostatistics, creative arts and lived experience of mental illness, and we have the capacity to change the landscape of mental health treatment in youth. We work collaboratively to investigate safety and efficacy of repetitive Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (rTMS) in young people.

rTMS is an approved Medicare funded therapy for depression that is currently limited to adults due to lack of an adequate evidence-base in youth. We also explore a pathway towards personalised healthcare through neurological and genetic testing to inform treatment prescription. Our vision for this project is to build the foundation of a translational pipeline that spans preclinical research, clinical research, through to translation and implementation of personalised treatment, involving young people with lived experience of mental illness at every step.

Our research aims to:

(1) Investigate the long-term biological effects of rTMS delivered to the developing brain, and provide the neurological basis and evidence for the safety of brain stimulation treatments in youth.

(2) Explore the evidence for neurological and genetic markers that could lead to personalised rTMS treatment approaches.

(3) Establish a clear path towards translation and implementation of our research findings through clinical integration, community consultation and engagement.

This project will provide the scientific basis and proof-of-concept evidence for personalised

treatment prescription in a highly heterogenous population to drastically cut the costs and time associated with the provision of care in WA healthcare.