- ICH GCP
- US Clinical Trials Registry
- Clinical Trial NCT05436613
Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation Therapy for Bipolar Depression
Community-based Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation Treatment for Bipolar Depression
Bipolar disorder is a severe and disabling disorder. The course of illness is often progressive but is highly heterogeneous between individuals and within the lifetime for an individual. The most common treatments are medications. However, for many individuals, combinations of medications are often required, and full recovery is infrequent.
The novel brain stimulation treatment, transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS), is a potential first-line treatment for bipolar depression. The present research question is whether tDCS can be provided as a home-based treatment for bipolar depression for adults with bipolar disorder.
Study Overview
Status
Intervention / Treatment
Detailed Description
The novel brain stimulation treatment, transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS), is a potential first-line treatment for bipolar disorder. tDCS generates a small electric current which modulates how easy it is for active brain cells to discharge. The device is a headband worn over the forehead with two electrodes, which are small metal discs, where the current comes from. tDCS does not directly stimulate brain cells to cause a seizure like electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) and it does not induce brain cells to discharge like transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS).
Clinical studies have shown that tDCS treatment could help to improve the symptoms of depression. The main side effects have been redness, skin irritation or sensations (itching, tingling or burning) under the electrodes. Less commonly reported side effects include headache or tiredness. tDCS is a portable and safe treatment.
The studies to date have mostly looked at tDCS treatment which has been provided in a research setting. This is a problem because the treatment requires daily sessions for several weeks which could limit whether individuals would be able to go every day. As tDCS is a portable and safe treatment, it could be provided in the community.
The present study is a proof-of-concept trial to assess the efficacy, acceptability and safety of tDCS treatment for bipolar depression within a community-based setting.
Study Type
Enrollment (Estimated)
Phase
- Not Applicable
Contacts and Locations
Study Contact
- Name: Cynthia Fu, MD, PhD
- Phone Number: 0208 223 4119
- Email: C.Fu@uel.ac.uk
Study Locations
-
-
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London, United Kingdom, E16 2RD
- Recruiting
- University of East London
-
Contact:
- Cynthia Fu, MD, PhD
- Email: C.Fu@uel.ac.uk
-
-
Participation Criteria
Eligibility Criteria
Ages Eligible for Study
Accepts Healthy Volunteers
Description
Inclusion Criteria:
- diagnosis of bipolar disorder based on DSM-5 criteria
- minimum score of 18 on the MADRS
- being on a stable dosage of mood stabilizing medication for a minimum of two weeks
Exclusion Criteria:
- comorbid psychiatric disorder
- significant risk of suicide or self harm
- any contraindications to tDCS, including implanted electronic medical devices
- history of epilepsy
Study Plan
How is the study designed?
Design Details
- Primary Purpose: Treatment
- Allocation: N/A
- Interventional Model: Single Group Assignment
- Masking: None (Open Label)
Arms and Interventions
Participant Group / Arm |
Intervention / Treatment |
---|---|
Experimental: Device: transcranial direct current stimulation
6-week course of active tDCS treatment, consisting of 5 sessions per week for the first 3 weeks followed by 2 sessions per week for 3 weeks, for a total of 21 tDCS sessions.
The duration of each session is 30 minutes.
|
tDCS at 2mA in 30 minute sessions for 5 sessions per week for 3 weeks and then 2 sessions per week for 3 weeks.
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What is the study measuring?
Primary Outcome Measures
Outcome Measure |
Measure Description |
Time Frame |
---|---|---|
Clinical response [ Time Frame: At 6 weeks following course of tDCS treatment ]
Time Frame: 6 weeks
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As measured by clinician-rated MADRS score improvement of >= 50% following the course of tDCS treatment
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6 weeks
|
Collaborators and Investigators
Sponsor
Investigators
- Principal Investigator: Cynthia Fu, MD, PhD, University of East London
Publications and helpful links
General Publications
- Mutz J, Edgcumbe DR, Brunoni AR, Fu CHY. Efficacy and acceptability of non-invasive brain stimulation for the treatment of adult unipolar and bipolar depression: A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomised sham-controlled trials. Neurosci Biobehav Rev. 2018 Sep;92:291-303. doi: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2018.05.015. Epub 2018 May 12.
- Mutz J, Vipulananthan V, Carter B, Hurlemann R, Fu CHY, Young AH. Comparative efficacy and acceptability of non-surgical brain stimulation for the acute treatment of major depressive episodes in adults: systematic review and network meta-analysis. BMJ. 2019 Mar 27;364:l1079. doi: 10.1136/bmj.l1079.
- Woodham R, Rimmer RM, Mutz J, Fu CHY. Is tDCS a potential first line treatment for major depression? Int Rev Psychiatry. 2021 May;33(3):250-265. doi: 10.1080/09540261.2021.1879030. Epub 2021 Mar 11.
- Woodham RD, Rimmer RM, Young AH, Fu CHY. Adjunctive home-based transcranial direct current stimulation treatment for major depression with real-time remote supervision: An open-label, single-arm feasibility study with long term outcomes. J Psychiatr Res. 2022 Sep;153:197-205. doi: 10.1016/j.jpsychires.2022.07.026. Epub 2022 Jul 8.
Study record dates
Study Major Dates
Study Start (Actual)
Primary Completion (Estimated)
Study Completion (Estimated)
Study Registration Dates
First Submitted
First Submitted That Met QC Criteria
First Posted (Actual)
Study Record Updates
Last Update Posted (Actual)
Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria
Last Verified
More Information
Terms related to this study
Additional Relevant MeSH Terms
Other Study ID Numbers
- 308690
Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)
Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?
Drug and device information, study documents
Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product
Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product
This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.
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