Combined behavioral and electrophysiological evidence for a direct cortical effect of prefrontal tDCS on disorders of consciousness.

ABSTRACT: Severe brain injuries can lead to long-lasting disorders of consciousness (DoC) such as vegetative state/unresponsive wakefulness syndrome (VS/UWS) or minimally conscious state (MCS). While behavioral assessment remains the gold standard to determine conscious state, EEG has proven to be a promising complementary tool to monitor the effect of new therapeutics. Encouraging results have been obtained with invasive electrical stimulation of the brain, and recent studies identified transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) as an effective approach in randomized controlled trials. This non-invasive and inexpensive tool may turn out to be the preferred treatment option. However, its mechanisms of action and physiological effects on brain activity remain unclear and debated. Here, we stimula

SUBMITTER: Hermann B 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7062738 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature