Focused ultrasound is a therapeutic technology that could transform the quality of life and decrease the cost of care for patients with anxiety. This novel technology focuses beams of ultrasound energy precisely and accurately on targets in the body without damaging surrounding normal tissue.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
How it Works<\/strong> The primary options for treatment of anxiety include medication, but it is often limited in its success. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Advantages<\/strong> A clinical trial<\/strong><\/a> in California is using low frequency neuromodulation to treat anxiety.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Another clinical tria<\/strong>l<\/a> in California is recruiting patient to treat with low frequency neuromodulation to reduce anxiety. <\/p>\n\n\n\n A clinical trial<\/strong><\/a> in Texas is using low frequency neuromodulation to treat the combination of anxiety and obsessive compulsive disorder.<\/p>\n\n\n\n A clinical trial<\/strong><\/a> in Rhode Island is using low frequency neuromodulation to treat the combination of anxiety and depression.<\/p>\n\n\n\n A\u202fclinical trial<\/strong><\/a>\u202fin Virginia is recruiting by invitation , using low frequency neuromodulation to treat anxiety. <\/p>\n\n\n\n A clinical trial<\/strong><\/a> is recruiting patients in Ohio that will use high frequency ablation to treat focal seizure propagation and anxiety.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The Foundation updates these pages regularly, but with the increasing number of clinical trials, we want to be sure that our audience has the latest information available. Therefore, we also added the website search information for the above trials. If you click here<\/strong><\/a>, it will take you to the latest information available from https:\/\/www.clinicaltrials.gov\/<\/strong><\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Search for a treatment center or clinical trial near you.<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Focused ultrasound treatment for anxiety is not yet approved by regulatory bodies or covered by medical insurance companies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Arulpragasam\u00a0AR,\u00a0Theyel\u00a0B, Barredo J, Pouille F, Gillotti JG, Greenberg BD, Wout-Frank MV’, Philip NS.\u00a0Low Intensity Focused Ultrasound Neuromodulation in Psychiatric Disorders: Mechanisms, Models, and Missing Links<\/strong><\/a>. Biol Psychiatry. 2026 Mar\u00a06:S0006-3223(26)00097-1.\u00a0doi: 10.1016\/j.biopsych.2026.02.019. PMID: 41796716\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n Prasad D, Jain R, Samal B, Sriram N,\u00a0Drysch\u00a0A, Menon SS, Selner AN, Mossner JM, Rosenow JM.\u00a0Focused ultrasound neuromodulation for psychiatric disorders: a scoping review of clinical applications and current progress<\/strong><\/a>. J Neural Transm (Vienna). 2026 Feb 19.\u00a0doi: 10.1007\/s00702-026-03113-3. PMID: 41711827\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n Kang Y, Han KM, Ham BJ, Auer DP, Kaiser M, Jung J.\u00a0Transcranial focused ultrasound for emotion regulation: A systematic review and quantitative summary of human studies<\/strong><\/a>. J Affect\u00a0Disord. 2026 Mar\u00a021;405:121621.\u00a0doi: 10.1016\/j.jad.2026.121621. PMID: 41871637\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n Arulpragasam AR, Philip NS. Quiet waves, deep impact: acoustic modeling of low-intensity focused ultrasound<\/strong><\/a>. Neuropsychopharmacology. 2026 Jan;51(1):351-353. doi: 10.1038\/s41386-025-02191-3. PMID: 40764758 <\/p>\n\n\n\n Du A, Huang M, Wang Z, Zhou H, Duan H, Hu S, Zheng Y. Using Low-Intensity Focused Ultrasound to Treat Depression and Anxiety Disorders: A Review of Current Evidence<\/a><\/strong>. Brain Sci. 2025 Oct 21;15(10):1129. doi: 10.3390\/brainsci15101129. PMID: 41154223<\/p>\n\n\n\n Tsunoda K, Webb TD, Lybbert C, Wilson MG, Mickey BJ, Kubanek J. Noninvasive suppression of responses to threat using focused ultrasonic waves<\/strong><\/a>. J Neurosci. 2025 Oct 29:e0776252025. doi: 10.1523\/JNEUROSCI.0776-25.2025. PMID: 41162150 <\/p>\n\n\n\n Barksdale BR, Enten L, DeMarco A, Kline R, Doss MK, Nemeroff CB, Fonzo GA. Low-intensity transcranial focused ultrasound amygdala neuromodulation: a double-blind sham-controlled target engagement study and unblinded single-arm clinical trial<\/strong><\/a>. Mol Psychiatry. 2025 Oct;30(10):4497-4511. doi: 10.1038\/s41380-025-03033-w. Epub 2025 Apr 24. PMID: 40275098 <\/p>\n\n\n\n de Souza DN, Seas A, Blethen K, Feigal J, Shah BR, Grant GA, Harward SC. Focused ultrasound as an emerging therapy for neuropsychiatric disease: Historical perspectives and a review of current clinical data<\/strong><\/a>. Psychiatry Clin Neurosci. 2025 Feb 12. doi: 10.1111\/pcn.13799. PMID: 39936841 <\/p>\n\n\n\n Shi Y, Wu W. Advances in transcranial focused ultrasound neuromodulation for mental disorders<\/strong><\/a>. Prog Neuropsychopharmacol Biol Psychiatry. 2025 Jan 10;136:111244. doi: 10.1016\/j.pnpbp.2024.111244. Epub 2025 Jan 3. PMID: 39756638 <\/p>\n\n\n\n Ziebell P, Rodrigues J, Forster A, Sanguinetti JL, Allen JJ, Hewig J. Inhibition of midfrontal theta with transcranial ultrasound explains greater approach versus withdrawal behavior in humans<\/strong><\/a>. Brain Stimul. 2023 Aug 21;16(5):1278-1288. doi: 10.1016\/j.brs.2023.08.011. PMID: 37611659<\/p>\n\n\n\n Becker CR, Milad MR. Contemporary Approaches Toward Neuromodulation of Fear Extinction and Its Underlying Neural Circuits<\/strong><\/a>. Curr Top Behav Neurosci. 2023 Sep 2. doi: 10.1007\/7854_2023_442. Online ahead of print. PMID: 37658219<\/p>\n\n\n\n Legon W, Strohman A, In A, Stebbins K, Payne B. Non-invasive neuromodulation of sub-regions of the human insula differentially affect pain processing and heart-rate variability<\/strong><\/a>. bioRxiv. 2023 May 5:2023.05.05.539593. doi: 10.1101\/2023.05.05.539593. Preprint. PMID: 37205396<\/p>\n\n\n\n Chu PC, Huang CS, Ing SZ, Yu HY, Fisher RS, Liu HL. Pulsed Focused Ultrasound Reduces Hippocampal Volume Loss and Improves Behavioral Performance in the Kainic Acid Rat Model of Epilepsy<\/strong><\/a>. Neurotherapeutics. 2023 Mar;20(2):502-517. doi: 10.1007\/s13311-023-01363-7. Epub 2023 Mar 14. PMID: 36917440 <\/p>\n\n\n\n Zhang X, Xu W, Sang G, Yu D, Shi Q. A measure for perioperative anxiety symptoms in patients with FUAS – treated uterine fibroids: development and validation<\/strong><\/a>. Int J Hyperthermia. 2022;39(1):525-529. doi: 10.1080\/02656736.2022.2051612.PMID: 35300541 <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Where the beams converge, focused ultrasound produces several therapeutic effects that are being evaluated. One is to use low intensity neuromodulation which can be aimed at various locations including the amygdala or the ventral striatum, with the goal of modulating the impact of stimulations to reduce anxiety. A second approach is to use high frequency energy to create a lesion in the anterior nucleus.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
For certain patients, focused ultrasound could provide a noninvasive alternative to surgery with less risk of complications \u2013 such as like surgical wound healing or infection \u2013 at a lower cost. Focused ultrasound can reach the desired target without damaging surrounding tissue, and it can be repeated, if necessary. <\/p>\n\n\n\nClinical Trials<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Find a Treatment Site<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Regulatory Approval and Reimbursement<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Notable Papers<\/h2>\n\n\n\n