Evidence map›Paper›PMID 37400373›Full record

SynthesisRevista brasileira de psiquiatria (Sao Paulo, Brazil : 1999)

An electric field modeling study with meta-analysis to understand the antidepressant effects of transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS).

Lais B Razza, Miles Wischnewski, Paulo Suen, Stefanie De Smet, Pedro Henrique Rodrigues da Silva, Beatriz Catoira, André R Brunoni, Marie-Anne Vanderhasselt

Abstract readMeta-Analysis
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Synthesis in Revista brasileira de psiquiatria (Sao Paulo, Brazil : 1999). The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 6 papers, 3 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
6citing papers in PubMed, 3 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.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

6 citing papers in PubMed, 3 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.

  1. Pooled it
  2. Pooled it
  3. Pooled it
  4. Review
  5. Article
  6. 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

8 authors.

Lais B RazzaDepartment of Head and Skin, Psychiatry and Medical Psychology, Ghent University Hospital, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium. Ghent Experimental Psychiatry Lab, Ghent, Belgium.
Miles WischnewskiDepartment of Biomedical Engineering, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA.
Paulo SuenServiço Interdisciplinar de Neuromodulação, Laboratório de Neurociências, Instituto de Psiquiatria, Hospital das Clínicas, Faculdade de Medicina, Universidade de São Paulo (USP), São Paulo, SP, Brazil.
Stefanie De SmetDepartment of Head and Skin, Psychiatry and Medical Psychology, Ghent University Hospital, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium. Ghent Experimental Psychiatry Lab, Ghent, Belgium.
Pedro Henrique Rodrigues da SilvaServiço Interdisciplinar de Neuromodulação, Laboratório de Neurociências, Instituto de Psiquiatria, Hospital das Clínicas, Faculdade de Medicina, Universidade de São Paulo (USP), São Paulo, SP, Brazil.
Beatriz CatoiraDepartment of Head and Skin, Psychiatry and Medical Psychology, Ghent University Hospital, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium. Ghent Experimental Psychiatry Lab, Ghent, Belgium. Department of Psychiatry, Free University Brussels, Ixelles, Belgium.
André R BrunoniServiço Interdisciplinar de Neuromodulação, Laboratório de Neurociências, Instituto de Psiquiatria, Hospital das Clínicas, Faculdade de Medicina, Universidade de São Paulo (USP), São Paulo, SP, Brazil. Departamento de Clínica Médica, Hospital das Clínicas, Faculdade de Medicina, USP, São Paulo, SP, Brazil. Hospital das Clínicas, USP, São Paulo, SP, Brazil.
Marie-Anne VanderhasseltDepartment of Head and Skin, Psychiatry and Medical Psychology, Ghent University Hospital, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium. Ghent Experimental Psychiatry Lab, Ghent, Belgium.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

objectiveTranscranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) has mixed effects for major depressive disorder (MDD) symptoms, partially owing to large inter-experimental variability in tDCS protocols and their correlated induced electric fields (E-fields). We investigated whether the E-field strength of distinct tDCS parameters was associated with antidepressant effect.

methodsA meta-analysis was performed with placebo-controlled clinical trials of tDCS enrolling MDD patients. PubMed, EMBASE, and Web of Science were searched from inception to March 10, 2023. Effect sizes of tDCS protocols were correlated with E-field simulations (SimNIBS) of brain regions of interest (bilateral dorsolateral prefrontal cortex [DLPFC] and bilateral subgenual anterior cingulate cortex [sgACC]). Moderators of tDCS responses were also investigated.

resultsA total of 20 studies were included (21 datasets, 1,008 patients), using 11 distinct tDCS protocols. Results revealed a moderate effect for MDD (g = 0.41, 95%CI 0.18-0.64), while cathode position and treatment strategy were found to be moderators of response. A negative association between effect size and tDCS-induced E-field magnitude was seen, with stronger E-fields in the right frontal and medial parts of the DLPFC (targeted by the cathode) leading to smaller effects. No association was found for the left DLPFC and the bilateral sgACC. An optimized tDCS protocol is proposed.

conclusionOur results highlight the need for a standardized tDCS protocol in MDD clinical trials.

Indexed as

Major Depressive DisorderTranscranial Direct Current StimulationAntidepressive AgentsBrainHumansPrefrontal CortexAntidepressive Agentscomputational modeling analysisdepressiondorsolateral prefrontal cortexelectric fieldmajor depressive disordermeta-analysissubgenual anterior cingulate cortexTranscranial direct current stimulation

Identifiers

PMID37400373
PMCPMC10897770

What OpenQuestion holds

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LicenceCC BY-NC
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Registered trials

None linked

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.