Helmet T. Karim PhD

Dr. Helmet Karim, Ph.D. was received Ph.D. in Bioengineering at the University of Pittsburgh focusing on the prediction of treatment response in late-life depression (LLD) with pharmacological functional magnetic resonance imaging (phFMRI) and machine learning approaches. We found that prediction of response was feasible using fMRI after only a single dose of medication and machine learning approaches that utilized kernels (e.g., principal components analysis). We found that the early neural changes (after a single dose and within a week of treatment) reflect later changes and differences in patients that eventually remit compared to those who do not remit.

This and other work have shown that early neural changes occur and may reflect the early stage of response, however, the behavioral changes are delayed (especially in late-life) thus by using these approaches we may help guide future treatments and shorten the window to treatment. Currently, Helmet is working on a draft of the K01 application to NIMH to investigate the neural effects of transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS). This work will focus on systematically modeling the effect of both amplitude, frequency, and orientation of the TMS coil with respect to both neural activations at the site of stimulation, but also in related networks. Further, we are proposing to model the effect of these parameters on neural activation during relevant tasks in major depressive disorder (MDD). By understanding the neural effects of TMS, we can build more sophisticated models to predict treatment response to TMS. Helmet hopes to become independent of mental health research that focuses on treatment prediction using fMRI following acute interventions, as these may improve treatment outcomes.