Does brain stimulation treatment improve mental health in older adults?

The study, published in the journal Brain Stimulation, suggested that the treatment, known as transcranial direct current stimulation, holds promise as a non-invasive, drug-free option to treat depression and anxiety symptoms, which affect 1 in 4 older adults.

“Depression and anxiety can affect mental health, cognitive function, and independence in older individuals. While medication and therapy are frontline treatments, there's a need for accessible, non-invasive options for those unresponsive to medication or unable to access intensive clinic-based programs”

said the study’s senior author Adam Woods, Ph.D., professor of clinical and health psychology at the UF College of Public Health.

In the study, nearly 400 older adults were randomly assigned to one of two groups: 12 weeks of tDCS paired with cognitive training designed to improve working memory and processing speed, or 12 weeks of cognitive training paired with a placebo version of tDCS. Researchers also collected data from cognitive, functional, and neuroimaging tests as well as self-report measures of psychological symptoms, including depression and anxiety.

After controlling for factors such as prescription drugs that may impact depression and anxiety symptoms, the researchers found that participants who received the tDCS treatment had significant improvements in mild depression and moderate to severe state anxiety, compared with the group that did not receive tDCS.

“Research shows that stimulating this brain area reduces psychological symptoms in diagnosed psychiatric disorders. Surprisingly, similar effects were observed in older adults without psychiatric histories. This therapeutic effect is crucial as even mild depression and anxiety in older adults can lead to adverse outcomes” said Hanna Hausman, the study’s lead author.

Reference: Hanna K. Hausman, Gene E. Alexander, Ronald Cohen, Yunfeng Dai, Samuel Wu, Adam J. Woods; tDCS reduces depression and state anxiety symptoms in older adults from the augmenting cognitive training in older adults study (ACT); Journal: Brain Stimulation; https://doi.org/10.1016/j.brs.2024.02.021