Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation in High-level Volleyball Players During Fatigue

NCT07866950 | Completed

• 1 other identifier: 2022166H
• Study Type: interventional
• Target: 20
• Locations: 1 country
• Sites: 1

Brief Summary

The goal of this clinical trial is to learn if tDCS works to treat fatigue state in athletes. The main questions it aims to answer are: Does tDCS on the physical performance in high-level volleyball players during dual fatigue. What montages have the best effects on fatigue state. Researchers will compare tDCS to a placebo (sham stimulation) to see if tDCS have the effects on fatigue state in athletes. Participants will: Received four 10 min sessions tDCS in counterbalanced order.

Conditions

Fatigue Recovery; Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation (tDCS)

Keywords

volleyball player; physical performance; fatigue; transcranial direct current stimulation

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (6)

• Spike test

  The spike test was used as previously described (Valades, 2009) to measure spiking performance. Subjects self-tossed the ball (Molten V5M5000), and then spike toward a 1.5 × 1.5-m target zone with maximal strength without jumping off the ground. Ball velocity was measured by radar gun (Bushnell Outdoor Products, Kansas, USA) situated in the target zone. Each player completed three trials, and the fastest ball speed was used in the analyses.

  At Baseline, immediately following stimulation, and 40-min following stimulation

• Medicine ball test

  The medicine ball test was used to measure upper limb strength (D et al., 2018). Subjects stood behind a line with their feet side by side but slightly separated, the 2-kg ball was initially drawn back behind the head, then propelled forward to achieve maximum distance. Each player completed two trials, and the best one was used in the analyses.

  At Baseline, immediately following stimulation, and 40-min following stimulation

• Counter movement jump

  The countermovement jump was used to measure lower limb strength and jumping performance (Del Coso et al., 2014). Following an auditory cue, the participant flexed his knees and jumped as high as possible, keeping his hands on his waist, and landed with both feet on the optical jump system (Microgate, Bolzano, Italy). Each subject carried out three trials, and the highest jump was used in the analyses.

  At Baseline, immediately following stimulation, and 40-min following stimulation

• T-test

  A modified T-test was used to measure agility and change of direction ability. As previously described (Sassi et al., 2009), subjects started with both feet positioned behind a starting line (cone A), then sprinted forward 5 m and touched the cone B. Then, they shuffled sideways to the left (2.5 m) and touched cone C. They then did the same side shuffling to the right (5 m) and touched cone D. They then shuffled back to the cone B, and backpedal to the cone A. All subjects completed two attempts, and the fastest time was measured by timing gates (Wireless timing systems, Shiniangong, China) used in the analyses.

  At Baseline, immediately following stimulation, and 40-min following stimulation

• 30-m sprint test

  Linear sprinting performance was measured by a 30-m sprint (Meckel et al., 2015), and the speed measure was obtained by a timing gate. All subjects started approximately 0.4 m behind the starting gate. All subjects completed two attempts and the highest speed was used in the analyses.

  At Baseline, immediately following stimulation, and 40-min following stimulation

• 15-s rebound jump test

  The 15-s rebound jump was used to measure continuous jumping performance (Del Coso et al., 2014). The subjects put their hands on their hips and performed continuous vertical jumps on the Optojump system. The average jump height was used in the analyses.

  At Baseline, immediately following stimulation, and 40-min following stimulation

Study Arms (4)

tDCS over M1

ACTIVE COMPARATOR

For the M1-channel, the anode electrode was placed on Cz, C1 and C2 (5 x 7 cm), and the reference (5 x 5 cm) was placed on the right shoulder.

Device: tDCS

tDCS over DLPFC

ACTIVE COMPARATOR

For the DLPFC-channel, the anode electrode was placed on the F3 (5 x 5 cm), and the reference (5 x 5 cm) was placed on the left shoulder.

Device: tDCS

tDCS over M1 and DLPFC

ACTIVE COMPARATOR

dual a-tDCS was performed in both channels

Device: tDCS

sham stimulation

SHAM COMPARATOR

In sham stimulation, the stimulator was turned off after 30 s of stimulation. Ramp up and down period lasted 15 s in all conditions.

Device: tDCS

Interventions

tDCS DEVICE

Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) is a neuromodulation tool that modulates cortical excitability and spontaneous brain activity via low-intensity currents.

sham stimulation; tDCS over DLPFC; tDCS over M1; tDCS over M1 and DLPFC

Eligibility Criteria

• Sex: all
• Healthy Volunteers: Yes
• Age Groups: Child (0-17), Adult (18-64), Older Adult (65+)

You may qualify if:

• volleyball players in High-level

You may not qualify if:

• Injuries or illnesses within the last three months

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Beijing Sport University: lead
• University of Bologna: collaborator
• Humanities and Social Sciences Research Funds of the Ministry of Education of China: collaborator

Study Sites (1)

Beijing Sport University

Beijing, China

Location

MeSH Terms

Conditions

Fatigue

Interventions

Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation

Condition Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Signs and Symptoms; Pathological Conditions, Signs and Symptoms

Intervention Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Electric Stimulation Therapy; Therapeutics; Convulsive Therapy; Psychiatric Somatic Therapies; Behavioral Disciplines and Activities; Electroshock; Psychological Techniques

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: October 5, 2026
• First Posted: October 9, 2026
• Study Start: August 2, 2024
• Primary Completion: June 11, 2025
• Study Completion: April 4, 2026
• Last Updated: October 9, 2026

Record last verified: 2026-10

Locations

CN (1)