ArticlePersonalized medicine in psychiatry
A review of transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) for the individualized treatment of depressive symptoms.
Article in Personalized medicine in psychiatry. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to trial NCT06562387 (Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation), which is not on this map. Cited by 23 papers, 1 of them a synthesis 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.
Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation (tDCS) as Adjunctive Therapy to Cognitive Stimulation in Medical Students With Depression
Who cites it
23 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 39 citations in OpenAlex.
- Evaluating the effects of tDCS on depressive and anxiety symptoms from a transdiagnostic perspective: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.Translational psychiatry · 2024Pooled it
- Targeting the prefrontal-supplementary motor network in obsessive-compulsive disorder with intensified electrical stimulation in two dosages: a randomized, controlled trial.Translational psychiatry · 2024Trial
- A novel technique for accurate electrode placement over cortical targets for transcranial electrical stimulation (tES) clinical trials.Journal of neural engineering · 2021Trial
- In-vivo imaging of targeting and modulation of depression-relevant circuitry by transcranial direct current stimulation: a randomized clinical trial.Translational psychiatry · 2021Trial
- tDCS reduces depression and state anxiety symptoms in older adults from the augmenting cognitive training in older adults study (ACT).Brain stimulationTrial
- Ultralight infrared-controlled wireless neuromodulation systems for freely behaving mice.Microsystems & nanoengineering · 2026Article
- Report Approval for Transcranial Electrical Stimulation (RATES): expert recommendation based on a Delphi consensus study.Nature protocols · 2026Review
- Hairline as a Neurosurgical Landmark.Cureus · 2026Article
- Combined tDCS and Neuropsychological Treatment for Adult ADHD: A Single-Case Feasibility Study on Cognitive and Emotional Outcomes.Brain sciences · 2026Article
- Advances in the Clinical Application of Neurostimulation in Major Depression.Advances in experimental medicine and biology · 2026Review
- C3-C4 transcranial direct current stimulation montage stimulates lower limb region better than C1-C2 montage.Clinical neurophysiology : official journal of the International Federation of Clinical Neurophysiology · 2026Article
- tDCS and neurofeedback in ADHD treatment.Frontiers in systems neuroscience · 2025Review
- Neuromodulation techniques in combination for a short-intensive treatment of depression and anxiety: a case report.AIMS neuroscience · 2025Article
- A review of diffusion MRI in mood disorders: mechanisms and predictors of treatment response.Neuropsychopharmacology : official publication of the American College of Neuropsychopharmacology · 2024Review
- Effectiveness of non-invasive brain stimulation on depressive symptoms targeting prefrontal cortex in functional magnetic resonance imaging studies: a combined systematic review and meta-analysis.Psychoradiology · 2024Review
- Modulation Effects of Repeated Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation at the Dorsolateral Prefrontal Cortex: A Pulsed Continuous Arterial Spin Labeling Study.Brain sciences · 2023Article
- Neurotechnology and Noninvasive Neuromodulation: Case Study for Understanding and Anticipating Emerging Science and Technology.NAM perspectives · 2023Review
- Neural signal variability relates to maladaptive rumination in depression.Journal of psychiatric research · 2022Article
- Effects of Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation Treatment for Anorexia Nervosa.Frontiers in psychiatry · 2021Article
- The Efficacy and Safety of Neuromodulation Treatments in Late-Life Depression.Current treatment options in psychiatry · 2020Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
3 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
Abstract
Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) is a low intensity neuromodulation technique shown to elicit therapeutic effects in a number of neuropsychological conditions. Independent randomized sham-controlled trials and meta- and mega-analyses demonstrate that tDCS targeted to the left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex can produce a clinically meaningful response in patients with major depressive disorder (MDD), but effects are small to moderate in size. However, the heterogeneous presentation, and the neurobiology underlying particular features of depression suggest clinical outcomes might benefit from empirically informed patient selection. In this review, we summarize the status of tDCS research in MDD with focus on the clinical, biological, and intrinsic and extrinsic factors shown to enhance or predict antidepressant response. We also discuss research strategies for optimizing tDCS to improve patient-specific clinical outcomes. TDCS appears suited for both bipolar and unipolar depression, but is less effective in treatment resistant depression. TDCS may also better target core aspects of depressed mood over vegetative symptoms, while pretreatment patient characteristics might inform subsequent response. Peripheral blood markers of gene and immune system function have not yet proven useful as predictors or correlates of tDCS response. Though further research is needed, several lines of evidence suggest that tDCS administered in combination with pharmacological and cognitive behavioral interventions can improve outcomes. Tailoring stimulation to the functional and structural anatomy and/or connectivity of individual patients can maximize physiological response in targeted networks, which in turn could translate to therapeutic benefits.
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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.