SynthesisNeurosurgical review2025
Efficacy of transcranial direct current stimulation on seizure control in patients with refractory epilepsy: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.
Synthesis in Neurosurgical review, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 3 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.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
3 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.
- Chemotherapy-related cognitive impairment and non-pharmacological interventions targeting the nervous system: a systematic review.Frontiers in psychiatry · 2026Pooled it
- Neuromodulation in Pediatric Epilepsy: When All Is Not About Resection-A Review.Epilepsy currents · 2026Article
- Non-invasive neuromodulation for drug-resistant epilepsy: a contemporary structured review of mechanisms, clinical evidence and future directions.Frontiers in neurology · 2026Review
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
10 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Drug-resistant epilepsy is a challenging condition that affects around 30% of all patients with epilepsy. Evidence regarding treatment options is limited, especially for surgery and invasive techniques. However, non-invasive techniques constitute a promising alternative for these patients. This meta-analysis aims to evaluate the effectiveness of transcranial direct current stimulation on seizure frequency management in patients with drug-resistant epilepsy. We searched the literature in PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science up to December 2023. We included randomized controlled trials that compared transcranial direct current stimulation with sham stimulation. Our main outcomes of interest were a percentage reduction in seizure frequency and epileptiform discharge frequency. A total of 10 studies with 269 patients were included. Monthly seizure frequency was significantly reduced by an average of -45.39%and -39.34% at week 4 and week 8, respectively. There was a significant reduction in IED in favor of tDCS at week 2 (SMD = -0.87, 95% CI = [- 1.49, - 0.25], P = 0.006), 4 weeks (SMD = -1.17, 95% CI = [- 1.67, - 0.66], P < 0.00001, Moderate quality of evidence) and 8 weeks (SMD = -1.11, 95% CI = [- 1.69, - 0.53], P = 0.0002) of follow-up. There were no serious adverse events associated with the stimulation. Transcranial direct current stimulation was associated with a reduction in both seizure frequency and epileptiform discharges with minimal side effects. Further studies with larger sample sizes and consensus protocol guidelines are needed to verify its long-term safety and effectiveness.
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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.