ReviewBrain stimulation2012
Clinical research with transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS): challenges and future directions.
Review in Brain stimulation, 2012. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to 15 registered trials, which are not on this map. Cited by 596 papers, 18 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Effects of the Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation on Prevention of Cognitive Dysfunction in Elderly Patients Submitted to Cardiac Surgeries: Prospective, Randomized and Double-blind Study
Effectiveness of Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation for the Treatment of Functional Dyspepsia: a Randomized Controlled Trial
The Effect of Hypocaloric Diet Associated With tDCS on Weight Loss and Metabolic Profile: a Pilot, Double Blind, Randomized, Placebo-controlled Study
Non-Invasive Direct Current Stimulation for Cognition in Schizophrenia
Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation (tDCS) in Chronic Post-Stroke Apathy
Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation (tDCS) in Post-Stroke Working Memory Deficits
Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation (tDCS) to Improve Cognitive Function and Cognitive Fatigue in Parkinson's Patients
Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation for Cognitive Rehabilitation of Children With Autistic Spectrum Disorders
Pilot Study Using Targeted High Definition Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation to Promote Upper Extremity Motor Function in Patients With Subacute Middle Cerebral Artery (MCA) Stroke
Effectiveness of Transcranial and Suboccipital Direct Current Stimulation on Endogenous Pain Modulation System in Healthy Volunteers.
Safety Study Based on Transcranial Electrical Stimulation in Chile: a Case Series Study
Assessment of Efficacy and Safety of Anodal Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation (TDCS) in Pediatric and Teenage Patients With Major Depressive Disorder During COVID-19 Pandemics
Non-invasive Neurostimulation and Rehabilitation in the Treatment of Patients With Respiratory Disorders: Randomized Controlled Clinical Trial
Effects of Transcranial Electrical Stimulation by Continuous Current on the Right and Left Dorsolateral Prefrontal Cortex Associated or Not With Non-invasive Vagus Nerve Stimulation in Adult Individuals With Chronic Stress
Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation (tDCS) to Improve Motor Function and Motor Fatigue in Parkinson's Patients
Who cites it
596 citing papers in PubMed, 18 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- Can exercise combined with transcranial direct current stimulation improve cognitive function in older adults? A systematic review and meta-analysis.Frontiers in neuroscience · 2026Pooled it
- Research trends and knowledge mapping of transcranial direct current stimulation in depression: a bibliometric study based on web of science, Scopus, and PubMed (2000-2025).Frontiers in psychiatry · 2026Pooled it
- The effectiveness of transcranial electrical stimulation in individuals with specific learning disorder (SLD): systematic review and transfer analysis.Journal of neurodevelopmental disorders · 2025Pooled it
- The Effect of Single-Session Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation on Cerebral Blood Flow: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.Brain topography · 2025Pooled it
- Transcutaneous and transcranial electrical stimulation for enhancing military performance: an update and systematic review.Frontiers in human neuroscience · 2025Pooled it
- Effects of neuromodulation techniques on pain and depression in patients with phantom limb pain: a systematic review and meta-analysis.Frontiers in neurology · 2025Pooled it
- Posture enhancement with cerebellum transcranial electrical stimulation: a systematic review of current methods and findings.Experimental brain research · 2024Pooled it
- Effects of physical training combined with transcranial direct current stimulation on maximal strength and lower limb explosive strength in healthy adults.Frontiers in sports and active living · 2024Pooled it
- The effects of repetitive transcranial magnetic and transcranial direct current stimulation on memory functions in older adults with mild cognitive impairment: a systematic review and meta-analysis.Frontiers in human neuroscience · 2024Pooled it
- Brain stimulation techniques as novel treatment options for insomnia: A systematic review.Journal of sleep research · 2023Pooled it
- Transcranial magnetic stimulation and transcranial direct current stimulation affect explicit but not implicit emotion regulation: a meta-analysis.Behavioral and brain functions : BBF · 2023Pooled it
- Combined Cognitive Training and Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation in Neuropsychiatric Disorders: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis.Biological psychiatry. Cognitive neuroscience and neuroimaging · 2023Pooled it
- Digitalized transcranial electrical stimulation: A consensus statement.Clinical neurophysiology : official journal of the International Federation of Clinical Neurophysiology · 2022Pooled it
- Evidence-based umbrella review of cognitive effects of prefrontal tDCS.Social cognitive and affective neuroscience · 2022Pooled it
- tDCS effect on prosocial behavior: a meta-analytic review.Social cognitive and affective neuroscience · 2022Pooled it
- Is transcranial direct current stimulation beneficial for treating pain, depression, and anxiety symptoms in patients with chronic pain? A systematic review and meta-analysis.Frontiers in molecular neuroscience · 2022Pooled it
- Cerebellar stimulation in schizophrenia: A systematic review of the evidence and an overview of the methods.Frontiers in psychiatry · 2022Pooled it
- Pooled it
- Modulating task-outcome value to mitigate real-world procrastination via noninvasive brain stimulation.eLife · 2026Trial
- Inhibitory Circuits of the Sensorimotor Network are Not Modulated By Cerebellar Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation in Isolated Cervical Dystonia.Cerebellum (London, England) · 2026Trial
536 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
14 authors.
Funding
Abstract
backgroundTranscranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) is a neuromodulatory technique that delivers low-intensity, direct current to cortical areas facilitating or inhibiting spontaneous neuronal activity. In the past 10 years, tDCS physiologic mechanisms of action have been intensively investigated giving support for the investigation of its applications in clinical neuropsychiatry and rehabilitation. However, new methodologic, ethical, and regulatory issues emerge when translating the findings of preclinical and phase I studies into phase II and III clinical studies. The aim of this comprehensive review is to discuss the key challenges of this process and possible methods to address them.
methodsWe convened a workgroup of researchers in the field to review, discuss, and provide updates and key challenges of tDCS use in clinical research. MAIN FINDINGS/DISCUSSION: We reviewed several basic and clinical studies in the field and identified potential limitations, taking into account the particularities of the technique. We review and discuss the findings into four topics: (1) mechanisms of action of tDCS, parameters of use and computer-based human brain modeling investigating electric current fields and magnitude induced by tDCS; (2) methodologic aspects related to the clinical research of tDCS as divided according to study phase (ie, preclinical, phase I, phase II, and phase III studies); (3) ethical and regulatory concerns; and (4) future directions regarding novel approaches, novel devices, and future studies involving tDCS. Finally, we propose some alternative methods to facilitate clinical research on tDCS.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.