Autism Spectrum Disorders: Double Blind Randomized Placebo-control Active Pilot Study of Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation Applied to the Superior Temporal Sulcus
Difficulties in social interactions are the core feature of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and are characterized by abnormal social perception, mainly concerning eye gaze. Anatomo-functional abnormalities within the superior temporal sulcus (STS), a key region of the social brain, have been described in ASD. The investigators had recently shown that it is possible to modulate the neural activity of the STS with transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) with an impact on social perception, measured by eye-tracking. In the context of ASD, stimulation of the STS with excitatory TMS could lead to an improvement in social perception, which would open up new therapeutic strategies. The purpose of this double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled study is to apply a therapeutic TMS protocol (10 daily sessions) at the right STS in young adults with ASD to improve their social behavior, objectively measured using eye-tracking.
• Male or female patient diagnosed with ASD according to DSM-V and ADI-R
• Patient aged 17 to 25
• Patient apt to undergo an MRI
• Patient affiliated with a social security system or beneficiary of such system
• Informed consent signed by the patient or his legal guardian.