Alpha modulation via transcranial alternating current stimulation in adults with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder

Kyra Kannen; Johanna Rasbach; Amin Fantazi; Annika Wiebe; Benjamin Selaskowski; Laura Asché; Behrem Aslan; Silke Lux; Christoph S Herrmann; Alexandra Philipsen; Niclas Braun

doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1280397

Alpha modulation via transcranial alternating current stimulation in adults with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder

Front Psychol. 2024 Jan 12:14:1280397. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1280397. eCollection 2023.

Affiliations

¹ Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Hospital Bonn, Bonn, Germany.
² Experimental Psychology Lab, Department of Psychology, University of Oldenburg, Oldenburg, Germany.

Abstract

Background: One potential therapy treating attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is to modulate dysfunctional brain activations using brain stimulation techniques. While the number of studies investigating the effect of transcranial direct current stimulation on ADHD symptoms continues to increase, transcranial alternating current stimulation (tACS) is poorly examined. Previous studies reported impaired alpha brain oscillation (8-12 Hz) that may be associated with increased attention deficits in ADHD. Our aim was to enhance alpha power in adult ADHD patients via tACS, using different methods to explore potential therapeutic effects.

Methods: Undergoing a crossover design, adults with ADHD received active and sham stimulation on distinct days. Before and after each intervention, mean alpha power, attention performance, subjective symptom ratings, as well as head and gaze movement were examined.

Results: Frequency analyses revealed a significant power increase in the alpha band after both interventions. Despite a trend toward an interaction effect, this alpha power increase was, however, not significantly higher after active stimulation compared to sham stimulation. For the other measures, some additional pre-post effects were found, which were not intervention-related.

Conclusion: Our study cannot provide clear evidence for a tACS-induced increase in alpha power in adult ADHD patients, and thus no stimulation related improvement of attention parameters. We provide further recommendations for the future investigation of tACS as a potential ADHD treatment.

Keywords: ADHD; alpha; attention; brain stimulation; tACS; virtual reality.

Publication types

Review

Grants and funding

The author(s) declare financial support was received for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article. The work was supported by a grant of the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF, 13GW0273E, given to AP). This publication was supported by the Open Access Publication Fund of the University of Bonn. NB received funding from BONFOR, by which NB and BS were partly funded. AP received funding from the German Federal Ministry of Education, by which BS’s and KK’s PhD positions were partly funded. AP and NB received funding from Medice, by which AW’s PhD position was funded. AP receives funding from the State of North Rhine-Westphalia by which LA’s PhD position is funded.