Abstract
Alcohol yearly causes 3 million deaths worldwide. A lot of treatments
already exist, but many of them are subject to a high percentage of dropout or relapse. Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS), a NIBS,
currently receives a lot of attention as a possible new addiction treatment.
Nonetheless, there is no existing consensus yet concerning the concrete
parameters (e.g. montage, current, intensity). Secondly, tDCS research
often focuses on subjective outcomes (e.g. craving), which could lead to
more biases and fluctuations. Also, current research often uses few stimulation sessions (e.g. 1 or 2 sessions). In this study, we desire to investigate
the effect of high-definition tDCS (HD-tDCS), a more focal stimulation
variant of tDCS, on AUDs. Using HD-tDCS, it’s possible to restrict stimulation to one hemisphere, and thereby control for potential inhibition effects
of the cathode. To find an answer to this research question, a betweensubject design, including 70 patients with an AUD, is carried out. Participants receive a total of 5 sessions of either real or sham right anodal HDtDCS over the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (dlPFC), carried out on five
executive days. Craving will be reported on a Visual Analogue Scale (VAS)
at baseline and after every tDCS session. Moreover, activity of the brain
(EEG) will be measured both at baseline, as well as after the first and the
last tDCS session, to measure effects on short-term and longer term. Brain
activity will be measured both at rest and during two inhibition tasks (Go/
NoGo and Cue Reactivity). Four weeks after the last tDCS session, abstinence will be assessed, as a follow-up measure. The goal of this research
project is to describe positive effects of right dlPFC tDCS on abstinence,
craving, and EEG outcomes
already exist, but many of them are subject to a high percentage of dropout or relapse. Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS), a NIBS,
currently receives a lot of attention as a possible new addiction treatment.
Nonetheless, there is no existing consensus yet concerning the concrete
parameters (e.g. montage, current, intensity). Secondly, tDCS research
often focuses on subjective outcomes (e.g. craving), which could lead to
more biases and fluctuations. Also, current research often uses few stimulation sessions (e.g. 1 or 2 sessions). In this study, we desire to investigate
the effect of high-definition tDCS (HD-tDCS), a more focal stimulation
variant of tDCS, on AUDs. Using HD-tDCS, it’s possible to restrict stimulation to one hemisphere, and thereby control for potential inhibition effects
of the cathode. To find an answer to this research question, a betweensubject design, including 70 patients with an AUD, is carried out. Participants receive a total of 5 sessions of either real or sham right anodal HDtDCS over the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (dlPFC), carried out on five
executive days. Craving will be reported on a Visual Analogue Scale (VAS)
at baseline and after every tDCS session. Moreover, activity of the brain
(EEG) will be measured both at baseline, as well as after the first and the
last tDCS session, to measure effects on short-term and longer term. Brain
activity will be measured both at rest and during two inhibition tasks (Go/
NoGo and Cue Reactivity). Four weeks after the last tDCS session, abstinence will be assessed, as a follow-up measure. The goal of this research
project is to describe positive effects of right dlPFC tDCS on abstinence,
craving, and EEG outcomes
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Number of pages | 1 |
| Journal | Brain Stimulation |
| Volume | 16 |
| Issue number | 1 |
| Publication status | Published - 6 Jul 2023 |
| Event | 5th International Brain Stimulation Conference - Lissabon, Portugal Duration: 19 Feb 2023 → 22 Feb 2023 Conference number: 5 |
Keywords
- inhibition
- HD-tDCS
- substance use
- alcohol use disorder (AUD)