About

Cristina Sophia Albott is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences. Her research primarily focuses on treatment-resistant depression, with significant expertise in neuroscience approaches such as ketamine infusion and transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS). Albott's work contributes to understanding and developing treatments for major depressive disorder, posttraumatic stress disorder, and related neuropsychiatric conditions. She leads and collaborates on multiple research projects, including randomized controlled trials investigating novel interventions like accelerated theta burst stimulation for headaches after traumatic brain injury and the use of ketamine as an experimental medicine probe for comorbid PTSD and major depressive disorder. Her research aligns with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, particularly those promoting good health and well-being and decent work and economic growth. Albott's scholarly output includes peer-reviewed articles exploring the neural and behavioral correlates of clinical improvement in treatment-resistant depression, the safety and efficacy of deep transcranial magnetic stimulation, and the physiological impacts of PTSD in young women. Through her research, Albott advances the understanding of neuroplasticity-based treatments and the mechanisms underlying complex depression and psychosis.

Research topics

• Medicine
• Psychiatry
• Political Science
• Psychology
• Anesthesia
• Nursing
• Clinical psychology

Selected publications

• Predicting antidepressant response to repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) based on prior treatment history

  Brain stimulation · 2025-01-01

  articleOpen access

  Background: This study explored the feasibility of a spaced transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) protocol for major depressive disorder (MDD).Methods: Thirty participants with MDD were enrolled in an open-label study to receive 50 tDCS sessions over two weeks.Feasibility, safety, tolerability, and preliminary therapeutic outcomes were evaluated using the HDRS-17 and MADRS at baseline, 1-week, and 4-week follow-ups, and the HDRS-6 was administered daily during treatment.Results: The protocol showed high feasibility, with a retention rate of 93.3% and adherence of 99.7%.No serious adverse events were reported.The most frequent side effects were mild tingling and itching during stimulation (100%) and temporary skin redness (100%), while 64.3% of participants experienced mild contact dermatitis, which resolved in all cases by follow-up.Skin irritation disappeared for most participants by the 1-week follow-up and for the rest by the 4-week follow-up.These side effects did not limit treatment or require intervention.HDRS-17 scores improved from a baseline mean of 21.3 (SD 3.0) to 15.3 (SD 6.3) at 1-week, and 13.2 (SD 7.1) at 4-week follow-up.Repeated measures ANOVA revealed a significant time effect on HDRS-17 scores (F(2, 52) 29.131, p < .001,hp 2 .528).Similar findings were observed on the MADRS.Interaction effects were noted in HDRS-6 scores between time and response groups, particularly between the 1-and 4-week follow-ups (Wilks' Lambda .165,F(12, 12) 5.075, p .004,hp 2 .835). Conclusion:The protocol was feasible, safe, and well-tolerated, leading to significant symptom reductions.Further validation through shamcontrolled randomized trials, with the inclusion of neurophysiological measures, may enhance understanding of biological mechanisms and support biomarker identification.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Trajectory Modeling and Response Prediction in Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation for Depression

  medRxiv · 2024-05-31 · 2 citations

  preprintOpen access

  Repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) therapy could be improved by better and earlier prediction of response. Latent class mixture (LCMM) and non-linear mixed effects (NLME) modelling have been applied to model the trajectories of antidepressant response (or non-response) to TMS, but it is not known whether such models can predict clinical outcomes. We compared LCMM and NLME approaches to model the antidepressant response to TMS in a naturalistic sample of 238 patients receiving rTMS for treatment resistant depression (TRD), across multiple coils and protocols. We then compared the predictive power of those models. LCMM trajectories were influenced largely by baseline symptom severity, but baseline symptoms provided little predictive power for later antidepressant response. Rather, the optimal LCMM model was a nonlinear two-class model that accounted for baseline symptoms. This model accurately predicted patient response at 4 weeks of treatment (AUC = 0.70, 95% CI = [0.52-0.87]), but not before. NLME offered slightly improved predictive performance at 4 weeks of treatment (AUC = 0.76, 95% CI = [0.58 - 0.94], but likewise, not before. In showing the predictive validity of these approaches to model response trajectories to rTMS, we provided preliminary evidence that trajectory modeling could be used to guide future treatment decisions.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Effects of TMS on anhedonia and suicidal ideation in treatment-resistant depression: Outcomes from the University of Minnesota Interventional Psychiatry Program

  Journal of Mood and Anxiety Disorders · 2024-05-31 · 2 citations

  articleOpen accessSenior author

  <h2>Abstract</h2><h3>Background</h3> A developing literature suggests that transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) can target anhedonia and suicidal ideation (SI), core symptoms of treatment-resistant depression (TRD). This present naturalistic study extends the existing literature by investigating the connection between changes in anhedonia and suicidal ideation (SI) related to transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS), independent of any overall changes in depression. <h3>Methods</h3> Pre and post treatment PHQ-9 and IDS-SR data were collected from 181 TRD patients who received dorsolateral prefrontal cortex ( dlPFC) TMS using the Figure-8 or H1-coil. Changes in overall depression symptoms, anhedonia, and SI were analyzed using chi square tests, repeated measure ANOVAS, and linear regression for repeated measures. <h3>Results</h3> TMS yielded changes in overall depression symptoms (PHQ-9 Cohen's <i>d</i> = 1.02; IDS-SR Cohen's <i>d</i> = 1.05), with 23.9 % and 41.7 % of patients experiencing response as measured by IDS-SR and PHQ-9, respectively. TMS treatment was also associated with large changes in both anhedonia (<i>d</i> = 1.03) and SI (<i>d</i> = 0.88), which were similar in magnitude to changes in all other depression symptoms (<i>d</i> = 0.97). Importantly, changes in anhedonia predicted changes in SI, even after controlling for baseline depression severity and change in other depression symptoms. <h3>Limitations</h3> The lack of a control arm and a neuroimaging measure temper mechanistic conclusion. <h3>Conclusion</h3> Our results reinforce the effectiveness of TMS in TRD and provide new evidence that anhedonia and SI may belong to a broader symptom cluster potentially undergirded by a shared circuitry accessible to dlPFC TMS.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Trajectory modeling and response prediction in transcranial magnetic stimulation for depression

  Personalized Medicine in Psychiatry · 2024-08-23 · 2 citations

  articleOpen access
  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Higher arterial stiffness and blunted vagal control of the heart in young women with compared to without a clinical diagnosis of PTSD

  Clinical Autonomic Research · 2024-02-01 · 12 citations

  articleOpen access
  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Deep transcranial magnetic stimulation for adolescents with treatment-resistant depression: A preliminary dose-finding study exploring safety and clinical effectiveness

  Journal of Affective Disorders · 2024-03-12 · 11 citations

  articleOpen access
  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• 267. Outcomes from University of Minnesota Clinical RTMS Clinic for Treatment-Resistant Depression: RTMS Effects on Suicidal Ideation as a Function of Baseline Anhedonia

  Biological Psychiatry · 2023-04-10 · 1 citations

  articleSenior author
  PublisherDOI

• Neurocognitive effects of repeated ketamine infusions in comorbid posttraumatic stress disorder and major depressive disorder

  Journal of Affective Disorders · 2022-04-14 · 11 citations

  article1st authorCorresponding
  PublisherDOI

• Outcomes from University of Minnesota Clinical rTMS Clinic for resistant depression: naturalistic data on suicidal ideation

  Brain stimulation · 2021-11-01

  articleOpen accessSenior author
  PublisherDOI

• Covid effects on clinical outcomes of TMS treatment: a naturalistic study

  Brain stimulation · 2021-11-01

  articleOpen accessSenior author

  Abstract Background: The COVID-19 crisis and/or lockdown induced deep modifications in the population health profile. Research suggests that the disruptions introduced by the COVID-19 pandemic have led to modified treatment efficacy. Long term consequences of the virus on the mind, affect and cognition are yet to be discovered. Two goals of this study were to measure the pandemic's effect on clinical outcomes of TMS treatment and to explore if there are lasting effects of the COVID disease on self-reported depression symptoms. We hypothesize that 1) response rate would differ before and after the start of pandemic 2)worsening suicidal ideation, anhedonia and cognition would be greater than other depressive symptomatology in patients with COVID history. Methods: Data from the University of Minnesota Neuromodulation Clinic was retrospectively analyzed.As part of the clinic procedures, patients completed a PHQ-9 every treatment day. For the first aim, clinical outcomes of patients who received TMS after the lockdown measures were in place in MN were compared to those who completed the series prior. For the second aim, PHQ-9 scores were compared between patients who tested positive for COVID since the beginning of the pandemic and those who did not. Results: Out of 181 patients who received TMS between May 2017 and December 2020, 60 patients were affected by COVID lockdown. Pre-pandemic response rate was 48.8%. This decreased to 30% post-pandemic (Chi-square p= 0.016). Previously identified treatment trajectories from our clinic also differed from pre-pandemic dates. Data collection still continues for the second aim. Discussion: Our results quantify that The COVID-19 pandemic has negatively affected many people’s mental health and created new barriers for people already suffering from mental illness. Going forward, exploring the long term effects of the virus on depressive symptomatology will guide more focused future research and interventions. Keywords: COVID, TMS, Treatment-resistant depression, Pandemic

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

Recent grants

• Characterization of Comorbid Posttraumatic Stress Disorder and Major Depressive Disorder Utilizing Ketamine as an Experimental Medicine Probe

  NIH · $1.0M · 2020–2025

Frequent coauthors

• Kelvin O. Lim

  University of Minnesota

  41 shared

• Paulo Shiroma

  Minneapolis VA Medical Center

  22 shared

• Paul Thuras

  University of Minnesota

  22 shared

• Joseph Wels

  Minneapolis VA Health Care System

  16 shared

• Ziad Nahas

  University of Minnesota

  14 shared

• Michelle Thai

  Twin Cities Orthopedics

  14 shared

• Alik S. Widge

  University of Minnesota

  14 shared

• Susannah J. Tye

  Emory University

  12 shared

Awards & honors

• Harold Lawn Resident Teacher of the Year Award
• APA Research Colloquium Junior Investigator Award
• Society for Biological Psychiatry Chair’s Choice Award
• ADAA Alies Muskin Career Development Leadership Program
• NIH Loan Repayment Award Recipient in Clinical Research (mul…