J Clin Neurol.  2022 Jul;18(4):391-400. 10.3988/jcn.2022.18.4.391.

Potential of Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation in Alzheimer’s Disease: Optimizing Trials Toward Clinical Use

Affiliations
  • 1Department of Neurology, New York University Langone Health, New York, NY, USA
  • 2Department of Biomedical Engineering, The City College of New York, City University of New York, NY, USA
  • 3Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Health, Stony Brook University Renaissance School of Medicine, Stony Brook, NY, USA

Abstract

Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) is a safe and well-tolerated noninvasive method for stimulating the brain that is rapidly developing into a treatment method for various neurological and psychiatric conditions. In particular, there is growing evidence of a therapeutic role for tDCS in ameliorating or delaying the cognitive decline in Alzheimer’s disease (AD). We provide a brief overview of the current development and application status of tDCS as a nonpharmacological therapeutic method for AD and mild cognitive impairment (MCI), summarize the levels of evidence, and identify the improvements needed for clinical applications. We also suggest future directions for large-scale controlled clinical trials of tDCS in AD and MCI, and emphasize the necessity of identifying the mechanistic targets to facilitate clinical applications.

Keyword

transcranial direct current stimulation; Alzheimer disease; clinical trial
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