NCT01288183

Anodal Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation (tDCS) in the Treatment of Tobacco Addiction

Behavioral Impact of Prefrontal Anodal Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation on Smokers

• Status: Completed
• Phase: N/A
• Study type: Interventional
• Enrollment: 38 (actual)
• Sponsor: Hôpital le Vinatier · Academic / Other
• Sex: All
• Age: 18 Years – 55 Years
• Healthy volunteers: Accepted

Summary

The aim of this study is to determine whether a powerful technique of noninvasive brain stimulation, transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS), could reduce cigarette smoking and constitute a treatment of tobacco addiction.

Detailed description

Tobacco is estimated to cause more than 5 millions yearly deaths in the developed world. Although most smokers would like to quit, relapse rates remain high. It seems that this relapse is linked with the process of craving, which is a powerful desire to smoke elicited by smoking deprivation or exposure to situations or cues that are associated with smoking. Neuroimaging studies have shown that the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC), and especially the right part, is critically involved in processing the craving of smoking. Increasing the activity of the DLPFC by noninvasive brain stimulation has been demonstrated to be effective in decreasing craving symptoms in cigarette smokers. The aim of this study is to determine whether a powerful technique of noninvasive brain stimulation, transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS), could reduce cigarette smoking. tDCS is a painless and safe brain stimulation method capable of modulating cortical excitability. The nature of these modulations depends on stimulation polarity: anodal tDCS is thought to cause neuronal depolarisation and thus enhancing cortical excitability whereas cathodal stimulation is proposed to reduce excitability. The investigators hypothesize that anodal tDCS applied repetitively to the right DLPFC could constitute a treatment of tobacco addiction. Therefore, the investigators will conduct a sham-tDCS-controlled, randomized, double-blind study.

Conditions

• Addiction
• Smoking

Interventions

Type	Name	Description
PROCEDURE	sham tDCS	sham condition as delivered by the stimulator "study mode" (2mA during 40s and brief current pulses until the end of the stimulation) 20 minutes, 10 sessions, 2 per day
PROCEDURE	active tDCS	anodal tDCS applied over the right DLPFC 2mA, 20minutes, 10 sessions, 2 per day

Timeline

• Start date: 2011-01-01
• Primary completion: 2014-12-01
• Completion: 2014-12-01
• First posted: 2011-02-02
• Last updated: 2018-01-26

Locations

1 site across 1 country: France