The Effect of Non-invasive Brian Stimulation on Language Production in Healthy Older Adults
The Effect of Transcranial Direct-current Stimulation on Discourse Production in Healthy Older Adults
1 other identifier
interventional
14
1 country
1
Brief Summary
The use of non-invasive brain stimulation techniques like transcranial direct-current stimulation (tDCS) for rehabilitation of language is a growing field that needs further studies to determine how best it can be used to enhance treatment outcomes. It has been shown that tDCS can improve language performance in healthy and brain-injured individuals such as increased naming accuracy. However, at present, it is not known what effect tDCS has on higher-level language skills like discourse production (i.e. story telling, giving instructions) in healthy, older speakers. Therefore, the aim of this study is to investigate in healthy older adults, the effect of tDCS on discourse production as well as the ideal tDCS electrode placement for improving language at the discourse level. It is hypothesised that tDCS will result in greater language changes and improvements during discourse production compared to no stimulation.
Trial Health
Trial Health Score
Automated assessment based on enrollment pace, timeline, and geographic reach
participants targeted
Target at below P25 for not_applicable
Started Oct 2018
1 active site
Health score is calculated from publicly available data and should be used for screening purposes only.
Trial Relationships
Click on a node to explore related trials.
Study Timeline
Key milestones and dates
Study Start
First participant enrolled
October 2, 2018
CompletedPrimary Completion
Last participant's last visit for primary outcome
December 19, 2018
CompletedStudy Completion
Last participant's last visit for all outcomes
August 22, 2019
CompletedFirst Submitted
Initial submission to the registry
January 29, 2020
CompletedFirst Posted
Study publicly available on registry
February 7, 2020
CompletedFebruary 11, 2020
January 1, 2020
3 months
January 29, 2020
February 7, 2020
Conditions
Outcome Measures
Primary Outcomes (4)
Change in word total
total number of words in a language sample
pre-intervention and immediately after the intervention
Change in verb total
total number of verbs in a language sample
pre-intervention and immediately after the intervention
Change in utterance total
total number of utterances (complete sentences including a predicate and argument) in a language sample
pre-intervention and immediately after the intervention
Change in percent of Correct Information Units
The percent of accurately produced words that provide information relevant to the language task
pre-intervention and immediately after the intervention
Secondary Outcomes (3)
Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS)
7 days
EPIC Physical Activity Questionnaire (EPAQ2)
12 months
The Keele Assessment of Participation (KAP)
4 weeks
Study Arms (3)
anodal tDCS on the left inferior frontal gyrus (IFG)
EXPERIMENTALanodal tDCS on the right IFG
EXPERIMENTALsham tDCS
SHAM COMPARATORInterventions
Transcranial direct-current stimulation is a non-invasive brain stimulation method that can modify spontaneous cortical activity in targeted brain regions. Anodal tDCS delivered through a positively charged electrode has been found to increase cortical excitability in a targeted brain region. Application of tDCS has been found to improve language production in healthy and brain-injured speakers.
Eligibility Criteria
You may qualify if:
- At least 65 years of age
- Native English speakers
- Right handed
- Normal aided or unaided visual acuity
- At least secondary school level of education
You may not qualify if:
- History of neurological disease or cognitive impairment
- Any contraindication of tDCS (i.e. history of seizures, metal implants)
Contact the study team to confirm eligibility.
Sponsors & Collaborators
Study Sites (1)
King's College London
London, SE1 1UL, United Kingdom
Related Publications (9)
Nitsche MA, Paulus W. Excitability changes induced in the human motor cortex by weak transcranial direct current stimulation. J Physiol. 2000 Sep 15;527 Pt 3(Pt 3):633-9. doi: 10.1111/j.1469-7793.2000.t01-1-00633.x.
PMID: 10990547BACKGROUNDThair H, Holloway AL, Newport R, Smith AD. Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation (tDCS): A Beginner's Guide for Design and Implementation. Front Neurosci. 2017 Nov 22;11:641. doi: 10.3389/fnins.2017.00641. eCollection 2017.
PMID: 29213226BACKGROUNDCattaneo Z, Pisoni A, Papagno C. Transcranial direct current stimulation over Broca's region improves phonemic and semantic fluency in healthy individuals. Neuroscience. 2011 Jun 2;183:64-70. doi: 10.1016/j.neuroscience.2011.03.058. Epub 2011 Apr 6.
PMID: 21477637BACKGROUNDSaffran EM, Berndt RS, Schwartz MF. The quantitative analysis of agrammatic production: procedure and data. Brain Lang. 1989 Oct;37(3):440-79. doi: 10.1016/0093-934x(89)90030-8.
PMID: 2804622BACKGROUNDMonti A, Ferrucci R, Fumagalli M, Mameli F, Cogiamanian F, Ardolino G, Priori A. Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) and language. J Neurol Neurosurg Psychiatry. 2013 Aug;84(8):832-42. doi: 10.1136/jnnp-2012-302825. Epub 2012 Nov 8.
PMID: 23138766BACKGROUNDNicholas LE, Brookshire RH. A system for quantifying the informativeness and efficiency of the connected speech of adults with aphasia. J Speech Hear Res. 1993 Apr;36(2):338-50. doi: 10.1044/jshr.3602.338.
PMID: 8487525BACKGROUNDWilkie R, Peat G, Thomas E, Hooper H, Croft PR. The Keele Assessment of Participation: a new instrument to measure participation restriction in population studies. Combined qualitative and quantitative examination of its psychometric properties. Qual Life Res. 2005 Oct;14(8):1889-99. doi: 10.1007/s11136-005-4325-2.
PMID: 16155776BACKGROUNDZigmond AS, Snaith RP. The hospital anxiety and depression scale. Acta Psychiatr Scand. 1983 Jun;67(6):361-70. doi: 10.1111/j.1600-0447.1983.tb09716.x.
PMID: 6880820BACKGROUNDWareham NJ, Jakes RW, Rennie KL, Mitchell J, Hennings S, Day NE. Validity and repeatability of the EPIC-Norfolk Physical Activity Questionnaire. Int J Epidemiol. 2002 Feb;31(1):168-74. doi: 10.1093/ije/31.1.168.
PMID: 11914316BACKGROUND
MeSH Terms
Conditions
Interventions
Condition Hierarchy (Ancestors)
Intervention Hierarchy (Ancestors)
Study Design
- Study Type
- interventional
- Phase
- not applicable
- Allocation
- RANDOMIZED
- Masking
- SINGLE
- Who Masked
- PARTICIPANT
- Purpose
- TREATMENT
- Intervention Model
- CROSSOVER
- Sponsor Type
- OTHER
- Responsible Party
- SPONSOR
Study Record Dates
First Submitted
January 29, 2020
First Posted
February 7, 2020
Study Start
October 2, 2018
Primary Completion
December 19, 2018
Study Completion
August 22, 2019
Last Updated
February 11, 2020
Record last verified: 2020-01
Data Sharing
- IPD Sharing
- Will not share
All information collected will be kept confidential and stored anonymously on password protected computers used only by research staff who are part of the study. Data will be stored securely in accordance with the Data Protection Act (1998) and the General Data Protection Regulations (May 2018). Stored, anonymised data may be used for future medical and health-related studies. Anonymised data will be retained for 10 years.