Transcranial direct current stimulation in stroke recovery.
Transcranial direct current stimulation (TDCS) is an emerging technique of noninvasive brain stimulation that has been found useful in examining cortical function in healthy subjects and in facilitating treatments of various neurologic disorders. A better understanding of adaptive and maladaptive poststroke neuroplasticity and its modulation through noninvasive brain stimulation has opened up experimental treatment options using TDCS for patients recovering from stroke. We review the role of TDCS as a facilitator of stroke recovery, the different modes of TDCS, and the potential mechanisms underlying the neural effects of TDCS.
Schlaug
Gottfried
G
Neuroimaging and Stroke Recovery Laboratories, Department of Neurology, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and Harvard Medical School, 330 Brookline Ave, Boston, MA 02215, USA. gschlaug@bidmc.harvard.edu
Renga
Vijay
V
Nair
Dinesh
D
D000818:Animals; D004558:Electric Stimulation / Q000379:methods; D006801:Humans; D008954:Models, Biological; D009473:Neuronal Plasticity / Q000502:physiology; D020127:Recovery of Function / Q000502:physiology*; D020521:Stroke / Q000473:pathology / Q000628:therapy*; D050781:Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation / Q000379:methods*