Author:
Kim TaeYeong,Salazar Fajardo Jhosedyn Carolaym,Jang Hanna,Lee Juwon,Kim Yeonkyung,Kim Gowun,Kim Donghyeon
Abstract
IntroductionTranscranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) has shown positive but inconsistent results in stroke rehabilitation. This could be attributed to inter-individual variations in brain characteristics and stroke lesions, which limit the use of a single tDCS protocol for all post-stroke patients. Optimizing the electrode location in tDCS for each individual using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to generate three-dimensional computer models and calculate the electric field (E-field) induced by tDCS at a specific target point in the primary motor cortex may help reduce these inconsistencies. In stroke rehabilitation, locating the optimal position that generates a high E-field in a target area can influence motor recovery. Therefore, this study was designed to determine the effect of personalized tDCS electrode positions on hand-knob activation in post-stroke patients.MethodThis is a crossover study with a sample size of 50 participants, who will be randomly assigned to one of six groups and will receive one session of either optimized-active, conventional-active, or sham tDCS, with 24 h between sessions. The tDCS parameters will be 1 mA (5 × 5 cm electrodes) for 20 min. The motor-evoked potential (MEP) will be recorded before and after each session over the target area (motor cortex hand-knob) and the MEP hotspot. The MEP amplitude at the target location will be the primary outcome.DiscussionWe hypothesize that the optimized-active tDCS session would show a greater increase in MEP amplitude over the target area in patients with subacute and chronic stroke than conventional and sham tDCS sessions.Clinical trial registration:https://cris.nih.go.kr, identifier KCT0007536.