Introduction The long preclinical phase of Alzheimer's disease provides opportunities for potential disease-modifying interventions in prodromal stages such as mild cognitive impairment (MCI). Anodal transcranial direct current stimulation (anodal-tDCS), with its potential to enhance neuroplasticity, may allow improving cognition in MCI. Methods In a double-blind, cross-over, sham-controlled study, anodal-tDCS was administered to the left inferior frontal cortex during task-related and resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to assess its impact on cognition and brain functions in MCI. Results During sham stimulation, MCI patients produced fewer correct semantic-word-retrieval responses than matched healthy controls, which was associated with hyperactivity in bilateral prefrontal regions. Anodal-tDCS significantly improved performance to the level of controls, reduced task-related prefrontal hyperactivity and resulted in "normalization" of abnormal network configuration during resting-state fMRI. Discussion Anodal-tDCS exerts beneficial effects on cognition and brain functions in MCI, thereby providing a framework to test whether repeated stimulation sessions may yield sustained reversal of cognitive deficits.
CITATION STYLE
Meinzer, M., Lindenberg, R., Phan, M. T., Ulm, L., Volk, C., & Flöel, A. (2015). Transcranial direct current stimulation in mild cognitive impairment: Behavioral effects and neural mechanisms. Alzheimer’s and Dementia, 11(9), 1032–1040. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jalz.2014.07.159
Mendeley helps you to discover research relevant for your work.