373-OR: Repetitive Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation—A Potential Antiobesity Approach for Long-Term Maintenance of Weight Loss

Current anti-obesity interventions result in early rapid weight loss, but long-term maintenance of lost weight is much more challenging. Initial weight loss is typically followed by a weight plateau and progressive regain. We demonstrated the efficacy of repetitive Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (rTMS) in inducing long-term weight loss (up to 1 year) in individuals with obesity by modulating the brain dopaminergic system and the prefrontal cortex. In a post-hoc analysis, we re-evaluated body weight loss up to 3 years after, in 44 individuals treated with a 5-week high frequency rTMS or sham stimulation, for obesity. Out of 44 subjects, 30 individuals (21 F/9 M, BMI 35.3±2.8, age 49.9±9.3) did not undergo any further weight loss treatments (except diet), 9 subjects (5 F/4 M, BMI 40.4±4.7, age 44.7±.6.1) underwent bariatric surgery, and 5 patients were treated for persistent obesity with a GLP-1 receptor agonist (GLP1-RA) (5 F/0 M, BMI 36.8±6.5, age 53.2±13.9). Out of 30 subject who did not undergo any further weight loss intervention, the 16 patients who received real rTMS (10 F/6 M, BMI 34.6±3.2, age 49.2±7.5) reported a significant body weight loss compared to the Sham group (11 F/3M, BMI 36.1±2.0, age 50.7±2.0) at the end of the 5-week intervention (BMI:-4.5±1.7% vs -1.6±1.8%, p=0.0001). Crucially, they continued to lose body weight compared to the Sham even 3 years after the end of intervention (BMI: -9.5±7.6% vs -3.6±8.4%, p=0.056). As expected, during the 3-year follow-up, bariatric surgery was more effective in promoting weight loss compared to the rTMS and the GLP1-RA (p=0.0001), but rTMS has not been shown to be less effective than GLP1-RA in maintaining lost weight (p=0.621). This preliminary evidence of efficacy of rTMS in promoting long-term weight loss (over one year) may be explained via neuronal neuroplasticity. TMS alone or in combination with other anti-obesity approaches may open new ways to sustain the efficacy of weight control interventions.