Combining reward-based incentives with deep brain stimulation for cocaine addiction
Contingency management plus deep transcranial magnetic stimulation for the treatment of cocaine use disorder
This project pairs incentive-based rewards (contingency management) with noninvasive deep transcranial magnetic stimulation to help people with cocaine addiction reduce use and prevent relapse.
Quick facts
| Grant type | U01 cooperative agreement |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | University of Texas Hlth Sci Ctr Houston NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Houston, United States) |
| Project ID | NIH-11238161 on NIH RePORTER |
What this research studies
If you join, you'll get contingency management — a program that gives rewards for clean drug tests — together with sessions of 'deep TMS,' a noninvasive brain stimulation aimed at deeper brain areas linked to craving and relapse. The deep TMS H4 coil targets the insula and lateral prefrontal cortex, regions important for decision-making, reward, and emotion. The study will compare people receiving CM alone versus CM plus deep TMS, tracking cocaine use, relapse, cognition, and mood during treatment and follow-up. The goal is to see whether adding deep TMS helps those who do not fully respond to behavioral treatment by strengthening key brain circuits.
Who could benefit from this research
Good fit: Adults with a diagnosis of cocaine use disorder who are seeking treatment and can attend regular clinic visits for counseling, urine testing, and repeated TMS sessions are ideal candidates.
Not a fit: People with contraindications to TMS (for example, certain implanted metal devices or a history of seizures) or those unable to make frequent in-person visits may not benefit from this approach.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, the combined approach could improve abstinence and reduce relapse by directly targeting brain circuits that drive craving and poor treatment response.
How similar studies have performed: Contingency management is a well-established effective treatment, while deep TMS for addiction is relatively new and has shown promising but still preliminary results.
Where this research is happening
Houston, United States
- University of Texas Hlth Sci Ctr Houston — Houston, United States (Active)
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Schmitz, Joy Marie — University of Texas Hlth Sci Ctr Houston
- Study coordinator: Schmitz, Joy Marie
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page below.