ArticleNeurobiology of language (Cambridge, Mass.)2020
A Study of Null Effects for the Use of Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation (tDCS) in Adults With and Without Reading Impairment.
Article in Neurobiology of language (Cambridge, Mass.), 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 4 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
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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.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
4 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 6 citations in OpenAlex.
- The use of noninvasive brain stimulation techniques to improve reading difficulties in dyslexia: A systematic review.Human brain mapping · 2022Pooled it
- Prefrontal TDCS does not improve working memory performance in individuals with chronic alcohol and tobacco use.IBRO neuroscience reports · 2026Article
- Effects of transcranial direct current stimulation on language recovery in chronic post-stroke aphasia.Current journal of neurology · 2025Article
- On the Effects of Non-Invasive Brain Stimulation Techniques on Developmental Dyslexia: A Systematic Review of Randomized Controlled Trials.Iranian journal of psychiatry · 2025Review
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
4 authors at 2 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
There is evidence to support the hypothesis that the delivery of anodal transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) to the left temporoparietal junction can enhance performance on reading speed and reading accuracy (Costanzo et al., 2016b; Heth & Lavidor, 2015). Here, we explored whether we could demonstrate similar effects in adults with and without reading impairments.
methodAdults with (
resultsThere were no conclusive findings that anodal stimulation impacted reading performance for skilled or impaired readers.
conclusionsWhile tDCS may provide useful gains on reading performance in the paediatric population, much more work is needed to establish the parameters under which such findings would transfer to adult populations. The documentation, reporting, and interpreting of null effects of tDCS are immensely important to a field that is growing exponentially with much uncertainty.
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.