Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41408102›Full record

Trial reportScientific reports2025

Acute and chronic effects of transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) on swimming performance and cognitive function of elite swimmers.

Mina Khantan, Behrouz Abdoli, Alireza Farsi, Roger Eston, Tommy R Lundberg, Ali Gorzi

Abstract readRandomized Controlled Trial
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Trial report in Scientific reports, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
1citing 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.

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

1 citing paper in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.

  1. Pooled it
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

6 authors.

Mina KhantanDepartment of Cognitive and Behavioral Science and Technology in Sport, Faculty of Sport Sciences and Health, Shahid Beheshti University, Tehran, Iran.ORCID 0000-0003-0984-1191
Behrouz AbdoliDepartment of Cognitive and Behavioral Science and Technology in Sport, Faculty of Sport Sciences and Health, Shahid Beheshti University, Tehran, Iran. b-abdoli@sbu.ac.ir.ORCID 0000-0001-6646-9854
Alireza FarsiDepartment of Cognitive and Behavioral Science and Technology in Sport, Faculty of Sport Sciences and Health, Shahid Beheshti University, Tehran, Iran.ORCID 0000-0002-2086-6632
Roger EstonAlliance for Research in Exercise, Nutrition and Activity (ARENA), University of South Australia, Adelaide, Australia.ORCID 0000-0002-2680-7473
Tommy R LundbergClinical Physiology, Department of Laboratory Medicine, Karolinska Institute, Stockholm, Sweden.ORCID 0000-0002-6818-6230
Ali GorziClinical Physiology, Department of Laboratory Medicine, Karolinska Institute, Stockholm, Sweden.ORCID 0000-0001-9420-1353

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) is one of the latest strategies used to improve the performance of elite athletes. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of short- and long-term unihemispheric concurrent dual-site anodal tDCS of the primary motor cortex (M1) and dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) on swimming performance and maximal strength (1-RM), as well as physiological (blood lactate levels- BL and heart rate- HR), cognitive (reaction times- RTs and distance of perceived fatigue- DPF) and psychological (mental toughness- MT) variables. Nineteen elite male swimmers participated in a randomized and sham-controlled study over 25 days. Freestyle swimming (100 m) test times were recorded in the morning and evening as pre-intervention tests of swimming performance. The swimmers then received acute and multi-session tDCS (2 mA for 20 min; once daily; 3 days per week) in addition to their routine training. Two days after the 10th tDCS session, the participants repeated the swimming performance tests (morning and evening). In addition, 1-RM, RT and MT were assessed as pre-post intervention tests in a rested state the day before and after the swimming tests. After 10 sessions of tDCS, morning and evening swimming performance improved (p < 0.05) and evening BL and DPF, and MT scores were higher than pre-intervention values compared with sham. Mean and best RTs decreased (p < 0.05) in tDCS compared with sham. No significant differences were found for HR and 1-RM scores. We conclude that multi-session tDCS, but not single session, improves swimming performance more than sham-treatment, as well as affects physiological, psychological, and cognitive function variables.

Indexed as

Athletic PerformanceCognitionSwimmingTranscranial Direct Current StimulationAdolescentAdultAthletesDorsolateral Prefrontal CortexHeart RateHumansMaleMotor CortexReaction TimeYoung AdultAthletic performanceBrain conditioningFatigueLactateMental toughness

Identifiers

PMID41408102
PMCPMC12714799

What OpenQuestion holds

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LicenceCC BY-NC-ND
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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.