Remediation of Cognitive Dysfunction in Euthymic Bipolar Disorder Patients Using Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation (tDCS)

Status

Completed

Phases

Phase 1

Study type

Interventional

Source

ClinicalTrials.gov

Registry ID

NCT01339598

Enrollment

Registered

2011-04-20

Start date

2011-09-30

Completion date

2015-10-31

Last updated

2015-11-03

For informational purposes only — not medical advice. Sourced from public registries and may not reflect the latest updates. Terms

Conditions

Bipolar Disorder

Brief summary

This study aims to investigate the potential for Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation (tDCS) to enhance cognitive functioning in euthymic bipolar patients through comparing the effect of active or sham tDCS (placebo control) during the performance of two cognitive tasks. The investigators hypothesize that task performance will be improved with active relative to sham tDCS.

Interventions

DEVICETranscranial direct current stimulation (Eldith DC Stimulator)

Eldith DC Stimulator (NeuroConn GmbH, Germany)

Study design

Allocation

RANDOMIZED

Intervention model

CROSSOVER

Primary purpose

BASIC_SCIENCE

Masking

SINGLE (Subject)

Eligibility

Sex/Gender

ALL

Age

18 Years to 65 Years

Healthy volunteers

Inclusion criteria

* Participants will be right-handed subjects aged 18-65 meeting DSM-IV diagnostic criteria for bipolar disorder, with no acute episodes of depression or mania within the previous 12 weeks * A score of ≤ 20 on the MADRS, and a score of ≤ 6 on the YMRS, who have been on a stable dose of mood stabiliser medications for at least 1 month.

Exclusion criteria

* Patients with high suicide risk * Co-morbid DSM-IV diagnosis of any psychotic disorder (current or within the last year), schizophrenia and schizoaffective disorder * Mental retardation * A history of drug or alcohol abuse or dependence within the last 3 months * Co-morbid attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), or any neurological disorder * Recent stroke * Head injury * History of seizure, or who have had electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) within the 6 months preceding enrolment. * Participants will also be excluded if currently taking medications known to be associated with frank cognitive impairment (e.g., benzodiazepines).

Design outcomes

Primary

Measure	Time frame	Description
Total correct responses.	Across each session (approximately 1 hour in duration), with each session conducted at least 1 week apart.	Total number of correct responses on each task in each session.

Countries

Australia

Outcome results

None listed

Source: ClinicalTrials.gov · Data processed: Feb 4, 2026