Lucia del Pilar Cristancho Pimiento

Lucia del Pilar Cristancho Pimiento

Professor of Psychiatry

Additional Titles & Roles

  • Director, ECT Service

Education & Training

  • Fellowship: Mood Disorders and Neuromodulation: Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, 2010
  • Residency: University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, 2008
  • MD: Universidad Industrial de Santander, Colombia, 2000
  • BS: Colegio de la Presentacion, Colombia, 1993

Major Awards

  • First place poster presentation at the Philadelphia Psychiatric Society, 7th annual Colloquium of Scholars, 2009
  • Second Place poster presentation at the Philadelphia Psychiatric Society, 6th Annual Colloquium of Scholars, 2008
  • Second Place poster presented at the Philadelphia Psychiatric Society, 5th Annual Colloquium of Scholars, 2007

Areas of Clinical Interest

Treatment of mood disorders, particularly targeting resistant depression with psychopharmacology and neuromodulation interventions including Electro Convulsive Therapy (ECT), Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS), and Vagus Nerve Stimulation (VNS).

Research Interests

Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation

Key Publications

    • Cristancho P, Cristancho MA, Baltuch GH, Thase ME, O’Reardon JP. Effectiveness and Safety of Vagus nerve stimulation (VNS) for the treatment of severe treatment-resistant major depression in clinical practice post – FDA approval: Outcomes at one year. The Journal of Clinical psychiatry 2011, Jan 11 (Epub ahead of print).

      Kim DR, Epperson N, Pare E, Gonzalez JM, Parry S, Thase ME, Cristancho P, Sammel MD, O’Reardon JP. An open Label Pilot Study of Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation for pregnant women with Major depressive disorder. J of Women’s health. 2011;20(2):255-61.

      Kim D, Connolly KR, Cristancho P, Zaponne M, Weinrieb M. Psychiatric consultation of patients with hyperemesis gravidorum. Arch Womens Health 2009 12;61-67.

      Pesiridou A, Baquero G, Cristancho P, Wakil L, Altinay M, Kim D, O’Reardon JP. A case of delayed onset of Threatened premature labor in association with ECT in the 3rd trimester of pregnancy. Journal of ECT 2010;26(3):228-30.

      O’Reardon JP, Cristancho MA, Andreae CV, Cristancho P, Weiss D. Acute and maintenance electroconvulsive therapy for treatment of severe major depression during the second and third trimesters of pregnancy with Infant follow up to 18 months: Case report and review of the literature. Journal of ECT 2010;26(2):146-147.

      O’Reardon JP, Cristancho MA, Cristancho P, Fontecha JF, Weiss D. Electroconvulsive therapy in a 96 year old patient with severe aortic stenosis – A case report and review of the literature. Journal of ECT, 2008 Mar 24 (1):96-8.

      O’Reardon JP, Lott JP, Akhtar U, Cristancho P, Weiss D, Jones N.
      Acute coronary syndrome (Takotsubo cardiomyopathy) following electroconvulsive therapy in the absence of significant coronary artery disease: A case report and review of the literature. J ECT 2008 Dec,24 (4) 277-80.

      O’Reardon JP, Cristancho P, Pilania P, Bapatla K, Chuai S, Peshek A. Patients with a major depressive episode responding to treatment with Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation are resistant to the effects of rapid tryptophan depletion. Depression Anxiety 2006; 0:1-8.

      Dhopesh V, Cristancho P, Caroff S. Magnan / Saury’s sign revisited. Resident and Staff Physician 2007; 4:32-33.

      O’Reardon JP, Cristancho P, Peshek A. Vagus Nerve Stimulation (VNS) and treatment of depression: To the brain stem and Beyond. Psychiatry 2006; 5: 54- 63.

      O’Reardon JP, Peshek A, Romero R, Cristancho P. Neuromodulation and Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS): a 21st century paradigm for therapeutics in Psychiatry. Psychiatry 2006; 3:30- 40.

      O’Reardon JP, Blummer KH, Peshek A, Pradilla RR, Pimiento PC. Long-term maintenance therapy for major depressive disorder with rTMS. Clin Psychiatry 2005; 66:1524-8.

      Rodriguez M, Cristancho L, Ramirez C. Characteristics of the prenatal care program in Bucaramanga 1998-1999. MEDICAS UIS 2001:15:159-68.

      Ardila E. Guzman M, Cristancho L, Mendez L, Puig A, Medina F et al. Associated factors in hip fractures in three University-based Colombian hospitals. Rev Assoc Col Geront and Geriat. 2002:16:3

      Book Chapters

      Cristancho P, Thase, ME, Cristancho MA. Mood stabilizing medications. In Weiner IB, Craighead WE eds. Corsini’s Encyclopedia of Psychology. 4th ed.

      Cristancho P, Thase ME. The nature of Depression. In Fischer PT, Wells A, eds. Treating Depression: Principles and practice of CBT, MCT, and Third Wave Therapies. 1st ed. ( In press).

      O’Reardon JPO, Cristancho MA, Altinay M, Cristancho P. Vagus Nerve Stimulation (VNS). In Dougherty, DD, Rauch SL, Greenberg BD. Psychiatric Neurotherapeutics: Contemporary Surgical & Device-Based Treatments in Psychiatry. 1st ed. Humana Press. (Submitted).