Brent Solvason

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Biography

Dr. Solvasen received his Ph.D. in cellular and molecular biology from the University of Alabama at Birmingham and his M.D. from the University of Alabama School of Medicine. He did his medical residency with the Stanford University School of Medicine, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences. Dr. Solvasen holds a California medical license and is a Diplomate of the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology. He is an Assistant Professor in the Psychiatry Department at Stanford University, and is Assistant Director of the Psychopharmacology Clinic, and the Depression Research Clinic there. He is also the Medical Director for the Electroconvulsive Therapy (ECT) Service. He is presently principle investigator on a number of projects studying Major Depression and treatment with novel brain stimulation technologies such as Vagal Nerve Stimulation, Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation, and Deep Brain Stimulation. He is also examining medication strategies for reducing cognitive impairment associated with the use of ECT. He has focused research on treatment resistant depression, and currently is examining a glucocorticoid antagonist as a strategy to normalize the stress hormone axis in individuals with depression unresponsive to extensive pharmacologic and psychological treatments. He is also the principle investigator for several studies sponsored by various pharmaceutical companies looking at the use of antidepressants in the treatment of Major Depression.