Evidence map›Paper›PMID 33887251›Full record

ReviewBrain research2021

Targeting neural oscillations with transcranial alternating current stimulation.

Justin Riddle, Flavio Frohlich

Registry-linked trialAbstract readReview
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Review in Brain research, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to trial NCT06048159 (TACS for the Recovery of Phonological STM After Stroke), which is not on this map. Cited by 33 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
33citing papers in PubMed, 1 pooled it
–field-weighted citation impact
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.

NCT06048159 narecruitingnot on this mapstarted 2023, after this paper: background citation

TACS for the Recovery of Phonological STM After Stroke

TypeinterventionalSponsorMedical College of WisconsinRan2023 to 2033Enrolled120ConditionsStroke, AphasiaArmsHD-tACS, Sham HD-tACS
3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

33 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.

  1. Pooled it
  2. Trial
  3. Trial
  4. Trial
  5. Review
  6. Article
  7. Tinnitus.Nature reviews. Disease primers · 2026
    Review
  8. Article
  9. Causal Evidence for Prefrontal-Motor Coupling in Reward-Responsive Goal-Directed Behavior.The Journal of neuroscience : the official journal of the Society for Neuroscience · 2026
    Article
  10. Review
  11. Attenuated theta-band activity and cross-frequency coupling in schizophrenia during affective response inhibition.Clinical neurophysiology : official journal of the International Federation of Clinical Neurophysiology · 2025
    Article
  12. Article
  13. Article
  14. Review
  15. Article
  16. Electroencephalography-driven brain-network models for personalized interpretation and prediction of neural oscillations.Clinical neurophysiology : official journal of the International Federation of Clinical Neurophysiology · 2025
    Article
  17. Noninvasive Therapies: A Forthcoming Approach to Parkinson's Treatment.CNS & neurological disorders drug targets · 2025
    Review
  18. Article
  19. Article
  20. Article
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

2 authors.

Justin RiddleDepartment of Psychiatry, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, 27599, USA; Carolina Center for Neurostimulation, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, 27599, USA.
Flavio FrohlichDepartment of Psychiatry, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, 27599, USA; Carolina Center for Neurostimulation, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, 27599, USA; Department of Neurology, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, 27599, USA; Department of Cell Biology and Physiology, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, 27599, USA; Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, 27599, USA; Neuroscience Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, 27599, USA. Electronic address: flavio_frohlich@med.unc.edu.

Funding

Rational Optimization of tACS for Targeting Thalamo-Cortical OscillationsR01MH111889 · NIMH · UNIV OF NORTH CAROLINA CHAPEL HILL · PI FROHLICH, FLAVIO · 2016 to 2019
$2.4M
Targeting Cortical Dynamics: Rational Design of Individualized Brain StimulationR01MH101547 · NIMH · UNIV OF NORTH CAROLINA CHAPEL HILL · PI FROHLICH, FLAVIO · 2013 to 2017
$2.2M
Targeted circuit modulation to delineate the causal role of oscillatory interactions in top-down networks of cognitive controlR01MH122477 · NIMH · UNIV OF NORTH CAROLINA CHAPEL HILL · PI FROHLICH, FLAVIO · 2020 to 2024
$1.9M
NIMH NIH HHS R01 MH101547NIMH NIH HHS R01 MH111889NIMH NIH HHS R01 MH122477
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Neural oscillations at the network level synchronize activity between regions and temporal scales. Transcranial alternating current stimulation (tACS), the delivery of low-amplitude electric current to the scalp, provides a tool for investigating the causal role of neural oscillations in cognition. The parameter space for tACS is vast and optimization is required in terms of temporal and spatial targeting. We review emerging techniques and suggest novel approaches that capitalize on the non-sinusoidal and transient nature of neural oscillations and leverage the flexibility provided by a customizable electrode montage and electrical waveform. The customizability and safety profile of tACS make it a promising tool for precision intervention in psychiatric illnesses.

Indexed as

CognitionHumansImage Processing, Computer-AssistedNerve NetTranscranial Direct Current StimulationAperiodic signalCurrent densityElectric fieldPeak frequencyPhase-amplitude couplingWaveform shapeWeighted phase lag index

Identifiers

PMID33887251
PMCPMC8206031

What OpenQuestion holds

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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.