Adults with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) may experience fewer symptoms of inattention after undergoing transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS). Small sample numbers, inconsistent methodology, and brief tDCS treatments were, nonetheless, the hallmarks of earlier research. For a study, researchers sought to evaluate the effectiveness and safety of home-based tDCS in treating the symptoms of inattention in adult ADHD patients.
In a single-center outpatient academic environment, a randomized, double-blind, parallel, sham-controlled clinical study called “tDCS for the Treatment of Inattention Symptoms in Adult Patients With ADHD [TUNED]” was carried out from July 2019 to July 2021. Sixty-four of the 277 potential participants who passed the phone screening were among the 150 who were evaluated for eligibility in person. Adults with inattentive or mixed subtypes of ADHD made up the participants. A diagnosis of bipolar disorder with a manic or depressive episode within the previous year, a diagnosis of schizophrenia or another psychotic disease, and a diagnosis of autistic spectrum disorder were among the exclusion criteria. Of the 55 participants, follow-up at 4 weeks was completed.
Sixty-four ADHD sufferers (31 [48%] inattentive presentation and 33 [52%] combination presentations) with an average age of 38.3 (9.6) years participated in the experiment. About 34 participants (53%) were men, and 30 individuals (47%) were women. The experiment was completed by 55 people. At week 4, the active tDCS group’s mean (SD) inattention score was 18.88 (5.79), whereas the sham tDCs group’s was 23.63 (3.97). These results were from the CASRS-I test. When comparing the active tDCS group to the sham tDCS group over the course of three assessments, linear mixed-effects models showed a statistically significant treatment by time interaction for CASRS-I (βinteraction = -3.18; 95% CI, -4.60 to -1.75; P<.001). The active tDCS group experienced more mild side effects than the control group, including skin redness, headaches, and scalp burn.
Adult patients with ADHD who were not taking stimulant medication saw an improvement in attention after daily use of a home-based tDCS device for 4 weeks.
Reference: jamanetwork.com/journals/jamapsychiatry/article-abstract/2794932
