Evidence map›Paper›PMID 31358702›Full record

Trial reportAging2019

Effects of transcutaneous vagus nerve stimulation in individuals aged 55 years or above: potential benefits of daily stimulation.

Beatrice Bretherton, Lucy Atkinson, Aaron Murray, Jennifer Clancy, Susan Deuchars, Jim Deuchars

2 registry-linked trialsOpen access · greenAbstract readRandomized Controlled Trial
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Trial report in Aging, 2019. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to 2 registered trials, which are not on this map. Cited by 72 papers, 5 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
72citing papers in PubMed, 5 pooled it
11.1field-weighted citation impact, top 1% of its field
1 · What the graph read from 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.

2 · The registry

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.

NCT05179343 nacompletednot on this mapstarted 2022, after this paper: background citation

Sham Controlled RCT Evaluating the Safety, Acceptability and Efficacy of Autonomic Neuromodulation Using Trans-cutaneous Vagal Stimulation in Uncontrolled Hypertensive Patients: a Pilot Study

TypeinterventionalSponsorQueen Mary University of LondonRan2022 to 2025Enrolled63ConditionsUncontrolled Hypertension, High Blood PressureArmsActive AffeX-CT device, Sham AffeX-CT device
NCT05343039 nacompletednot on this mapstarted 2022, after this paper: background citation

Leveraging Biomarkers and New Technologies to Reduce Self-Injury and Substance Abuse Risk Among Highly Vulnerable Adolescents

TypeinterventionalSponsorUniversity of Notre DameRan2022 to 2025Enrolled30ConditionsNonsuicidal Self Injury, Alcohol Abuse, Vagus Nerve StimulationArmsNon-invasive Transcutaneous Nerve Stimulation (tVNS), No Intervention
3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

72 citing papers in PubMed, 5 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 145 citations in OpenAlex.

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  11. Acute right-sided transcutaneous vagus nerve stimulation improves cardio-vagal baroreflex gain in patients with chronic heart failure.Clinical autonomic research : official journal of the Clinical Autonomic Research Society · 2025
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  13. Efficacy of transauricular vagus nerve stimulation for the treatment of chemotherapy-induced painful peripheral neuropathy: a randomized controlled exploratory study.Neurological sciences : official journal of the Italian Neurological Society and of the Italian Society of Clinical Neurophysiology · 2024
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12 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

6 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.

Beatrice BrethertonSchool of Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Biological Sciences, University of Leeds, Leeds LS2 9JT, UK.
Lucy AtkinsonSchool of Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Biological Sciences, University of Leeds, Leeds LS2 9JT, UK.
Aaron MurraySchool of Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Biological Sciences, University of Leeds, Leeds LS2 9JT, UK.
Jennifer ClancySchool of Life Sciences, University of Glasgow, Glasgow G12 8QQ, UK.
Susan DeucharsSchool of Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Biological Sciences, University of Leeds, Leeds LS2 9JT, UK.
Jim DeucharsSchool of Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Biological Sciences, University of Leeds, Leeds LS2 9JT, UK.
University of Leeds · GBUniversity of Glasgow · GB

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Ageing is associated with attenuated autonomic function. Transcutaneous vagal nerve stimulation (tVNS) improved autonomic function in healthy young participants. We therefore investigated the effects of a single session of tVNS (studies 1 and 2) and tVNS administered daily for two weeks (study 3) in volunteers aged ≥ 55 years. tVNS was performed using modified surface electrodes on the tragus and connected to a transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS) machine. Study 1: participants (n=14) received a single session of tVNS and sham. Study 2: all participants (n=51) underwent a single session of tVNS. Study 3: participants (n=29) received daily tVNS for two weeks. Heart rate variability and baroreflex sensitivity were derived. Quality of life (QoL), mood and sleep were assessed in study 3. tVNS promoted increases in measures of vagal tone and was associated with greater increases in baroreflex sensitivity than sham. Two weeks of daily tVNS improved measures of autonomic function, and some aspects of QoL, mood and sleep. Importantly, findings showed that improvements in measures of autonomic balance were more pronounced in participants with greater baseline sympathetic prevalence. This suggests it may be possible to identify individuals who are likely to encounter significant benefits from tVNS.

Indexed as

AffectAgedBaroreflexFemaleHealthy VolunteersHeart RateHumansMaleMiddle AgedQuality of LifeSleepTranscutaneous Electric Nerve StimulationVagus Nerve Stimulationautonomic nervous systemmoodneuromodulationquality of lifevagus nerve stimulation

Identifiers

PMID31358702
PMCPMC6682519
OpenAlexW2965001690

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

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.