The Effect of Non-invasive Brian Stimulation on Language Production in Healthy Older Adults
Study Details
Study Description
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.
| Condition or Disease | Intervention/Treatment | Phase |
|---|---|---|
|
N/A |
Study Design
Arms and Interventions
| Arm | Intervention/Treatment |
|---|---|
| Experimental: anodal tDCS on the left inferior frontal gyrus (IFG)
|
Device: Transcranial direct-current stimulation (tDCS)
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.
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| Experimental: anodal tDCS on the right IFG
|
Device: Transcranial direct-current stimulation (tDCS)
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.
|
| Sham Comparator: sham tDCS
|
Device: Transcranial direct-current stimulation (tDCS)
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.
|
Outcome Measures
Primary Outcome Measures
- Change in word total [pre-intervention and immediately after the intervention]
total number of words in a language sample
- Change in verb total [pre-intervention and immediately after the intervention]
total number of verbs in a language sample
- Change in utterance total [pre-intervention and immediately after the intervention]
total number of utterances (complete sentences including a predicate and argument) in a language sample
- Change in percent of Correct Information Units [pre-intervention and immediately after the intervention]
The percent of accurately produced words that provide information relevant to the language task
Secondary Outcome Measures
- Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) [7 days]
HADS is a 14-item scale which assesses non-somatic anxiety and depression symptoms experienced in the past week. Scores range from 0 to 21 for each sub-scale with a score ≥8 proposed for the identification of caseness, for both depression and anxiety.
- EPIC Physical Activity Questionnaire (EPAQ2) [12 months]
The EPAQ2 is a self completed questionnaire which collects information on a person's physical activity levels at home, work and recreation. Based on total activity hours in the last 12 months, the physical activity index categorises levels of physical activity into 'active', 'moderately inactive', 'moderately active' or 'active'.
- The Keele Assessment of Participation (KAP) [4 weeks]
The KAP is a short questionnaire that measures participation levels in various activities such as activities of daily living, social activities and work in the last 4 weeks. A score of 0 indicates no restriction in participation whereas scores from 1-11 indicate a restriction in participation in at least one activity ( the higher the score the greater the restriction).
Eligibility Criteria
Criteria
Inclusion Criteria:
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At least 65 years of age
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Native English speakers
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Right handed
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Normal aided or unaided visual acuity
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At least secondary school level of education
Exclusion Criteria:
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History of neurological disease or cognitive impairment
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Any contraindication of tDCS (i.e. history of seizures, metal implants)
Contacts and Locations
Locations
| Site | City | State | Country | Postal Code | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | King's College London | London | United Kingdom | SE1 1UL |
Sponsors and Collaborators
- King's College London
Investigators
None specified.Study Documents (Full-Text)
None provided.More Information
Publications
- Cattaneo 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.
- Monti 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. Review.
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- Thair 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.
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- Wilkie 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.
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- HR-19/20-6391