NCT01481558

Effects of Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation on the Apathy of Alzheimer's Disease

Effects of Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation on the Apathy of Alzheimer's: a Randomized, Sham-controlled Clinical Trial

• Status: Completed
• Phase: Phase 2
• Study type: Interventional
• Enrollment: 40 (actual)
• Sponsor: University of Sao Paulo · Academic / Other
• Sex: All
• Age: 50 Years
• Healthy volunteers: Not accepted

Summary

This is a phase 2 double-blind, randomized, sham-controlled study to investigate the effects of repeated transcranial direct current stimulation for the treatment of apathy in moderate Alzheimer's Disease in patients selected from an outpatient clinics in São Paulo, Brazil.

Detailed description

Forty patients were randomized to receive either active or sham-tDCS over the left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC). Patients received six sessions of intervention during two weeks and were evaluated at baseline, at week one and two, and after one week without intervention. Clinical raters, patients, and caregivers were blinded. The primary outcome was apathy. Global cognition and neuropsychiatric symptoms were examined as secondary outcomes.

Conditions

• Apathy
• Alzheimer's Disease

Interventions

Type	Name	Description
DEVICE	Transcranial direct current stimulation	tDCS 2 mA, dorsolateral pre-frontal cortex

Timeline

• Start date: 2012-01-01
• Primary completion: 2012-05-01
• Completion: 2012-05-01
• First posted: 2011-11-29
• Last updated: 2014-01-09
• Results posted: 2014-01-09

Locations

1 site across 1 country: Brazil