Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation (tDCS) Studies of Cognition, Oscillations and GABA Levels in Schizophrenia

Status: Recruiting
Location: See location...
Intervention Type: Device
Study Type: Interventional
Study Phase: Not Applicable
SUMMARY

People with schizophrenia often have problems with attention, learning and memory and other cognitive abilities that interfere with their work and school performance. Unfortunately, even our best treatments often do not significantly reduce these cognitive problems. The current study investigates whether or not delivering a very small electrical current to people's foreheads (called, transcranial direct current stimulation; (tDCS)) might improve functioning in the front part of the brain and reduce these cognitive problems in people with schizophrenia. tDCS is non-invasive and has been shown to improve cognitive functioning in some preliminary studies. The current study will investigate whether giving tDCS during a task is more effective than giving it during rest (Aim 1), whether delivery of tDCS to the front of the head is more effective than delivery to the back of the head (Aim 2), and whether tDCS delivery will alter levels of a major inhibitory neurotransmitter in the brain (GABA; Aim 3) that is important to cognitive functioning and may be disrupted in people with schizophrenia. Although this study is not intended to diagnose, cure or treat schizophrenia or any other disease, if results are positive it will encourage future large-scale studies to determine if tDCS can become an effective treatment for cognitive problems in people with schizophrenia.

Eligibility
Participation Requirements
Sex: All
Minimum Age: 18
Maximum Age: 47
Healthy Volunteers: t
View:

• Participants must be able to sufficiently speak and understand English so as to be able to understand and complete cognitive tasks.

• All subjects must have the ability to give valid informed consent.

• Diagnosis of schizophrenia, schizophreniform or schizoaffective disorder

• No medication changes in the prior month

• No medication changes anticipated in the upcoming month

• Stable outpatient or partial hospital status

• Normal IQ (\>70; IQ will be measured by administering the Wechsler Abbreviated Scale of

• Intelligence (WASI) test)

• Must not be currently taking the antipsychotic clozapine

Locations
United States
California
Imaging Research Center
RECRUITING
Sacramento
Contact Information
Primary
Molly A Bainbridge
mebainbridge@ucdavis.edu
(916) 734-8779
Time Frame
Start Date: 2020-01-09
Estimated Completion Date: 2025-08-31
Participants
Target number of participants: 160
Treatments
Experimental: DLPFC Stimulation + Task
Intervention. 20 minutes of 2 mA direct current stimulation over the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex during cognitive task completion.
Experimental: DLPFC Stimulation + Rest
Intervention. 20 minutes of 2 mA direct current stimulation over the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex during rest.
Sham_comparator: Sham Stimulation + Task
Placebo Comparator. 0.5-1 minutes of 2 mA direct current stimulation over dorsolateral prefrontal cortex followed by 19-19.5 minutes of sham stimulation, during cognitive task completion.
Sham_comparator: Sham Stimulation + Rest
Placebo Comparator. 0.5-1 minutes of 2 mA direct current stimulation over dorsolateral prefrontal cortex followed by 19-19.5 minutes of sham stimulation, during rest.
Related Therapeutic Areas
Sponsors
Leads: University of California, Davis

This content was sourced from clinicaltrials.gov