Healthy, Mild Cognitive Impairment, Alzheimer Disease
Conditions
Brief summary
Previous studies showed that transcranial electric stimulation (tES) applied over the prefrontal cortex improves cognitive performance in healthy elderly adults as well as in patients suffering from mild cognitive impairment or early Alzheimer's disease. Therefore, tES methods might be a useful intervention tool for patients suffering from memory impairment in early terms of the disease. The present study aims at establishing a connection between the stimulation-induced changes on associative memory performance and its underlying neurophysiological parameters. tES effects and their underlying mechanisms will be compared between healthy elderly controls and clinical study populations receiving either real or sham tES over the left ventrolateral prefrontal cortex during an associative memory task.
Interventions
The MR-compatible neuroConn DC-Stimulator MR (neuroCare Group, Ilmenau, Germany) will be used.
The MR-compatible neuroConn DC-Stimulator MR (neuroCare Group, Ilmenau, Germany) will be used.
DEVICEsham transcranial electric current stimulation
The MR-compatible neuroConn DC-Stimulator MR (neuroCare Group, Ilmenau, Germany) will be used.
Sponsors
University of Bern
Study design
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Intervention model
CROSSOVER
Primary purpose
BASIC_SCIENCE
Masking
DOUBLE (Subject, Investigator)
Eligibility
Sex/Gender
ALL
Age
60 Years to 85 Years
Healthy volunteers
Yes
Inclusion criteria
* Written informed consent * Non-smokers * Right-handedness * Native German speakers or comparable level of fluency * Normal or corrected-to-normal vision
Exclusion criteria
* Neurological or psychiatric condition (other than diagnosed cognitive impairment) * Past head injuries * Magnetizable implants * History of seizures * Current or life-time alcohol or drug abuse * Skin diseases
Design outcomes
Primary
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Performance on immediate cued recall task | 20 min | Number of correct responses on retrieval task of previously learned associative memory items |
| Performance on delayed cued recall task | 24 hours | Number of correct responses on retrieval task of previously learned associative memory items |
Secondary
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| task-dependent BOLD activity | 20 min | Measured with functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) |
| resting-state BOLD activity | 10 min | Measured with functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) |
Other
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Performance on cued recall task | follow-up after 24 hours | Number of correct responses on retrieval task of previously learned associative memory items |
| Performance on recognition task | follow-up after 24 hours | Number of correct responses on retrieval task of previously learned associative memory items |
Countries
Switzerland
Outcome results
None listed