Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) combined with cognitive training in adolescent boys with ADHD: a double-blind, randomised, sham-controlled trial.

Samuel J Westwood Marion Criaud Sheut-Ling Lam Steve Lukito Sophie Wallace-Hanlon Oliwia S KowalczykAfroditi KostaraJoseph MathewDeborah Agbedjro Bruce E Wexler Roi Cohen Kadosh Philip J Asherson Katya Rubia

Published in: Psychological medicine (2021)

This rigorous and largest RCT of tDCS in adolescent boys with ADHD found no evidence of improved ADHD symptoms or cognitive performance following multi-session anodal tDCS over rIFC combined with CT. These findings extend limited meta-analytic evidence of cognitive and clinical effects in ADHD after 1-5 tDCS sessions over mainly left dlPFC. Given that tDCS is commercially and clinically available, the findings are important as they suggest that rIFC stimulation may not be indicated as a neurotherapy for cognitive or clinical remediation for ADHD.

Keyphrases

transcranial direct current stimulation
working memory
attention deficit hyperactivity disorder
autism spectrum disorder
young adults
mental health
double blind
open label
study protocol
clinical trial
computed tomography
randomized controlled trial
physical activity
contrast enhanced
sleep quality