Table 2.
Mean Changes in Levels of Psychopathological Symptoms, Insight Levels, Medication Adherence, Extrapyramidal Symptoms, Psychosocial Functioning, and Life Quality After 5 Days of Bi-Anodal tDCS With Extracephalic References or Sham Treatment in Participants
| Variablesa | Active tDCS (n = 30) Mean ± SE |
Sham tDCS (n = 30) Mean ± SE |
F | P value | Partial η 2 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PANSS | |||||
| Negative score (primary endpoint) | −3.70 ± 0.46 | −0.67 ± 0.46 | 20.53 | <.001 | 0.268 |
| Total score | −11.19 ± 1.08 | −0.98 ± 1.08 | 42.12 | <.001 | 0.429 |
| Positive score | −0.55 ± 0.15 | −0.12 ± 0.15 | 3.64 | .06 | 0.060 |
| Grandiosity/excitement score | −0.30 ± 0.19 | 0.36 ± 0.19 | 5.60 | .03 | 0.091 |
| Disorganization score | −1.96 ± 0.24 | −0.24 ± 0.24 | 25.47 | <.001 | 0.313 |
| Depression score | −0.63 ± 0.13 | 0.03 ± 0.13 | 3.62 | .062 | 0.061 |
| Cognitive component score | −1.78 ± 0.20 | −0.15 ± 0.20 | 32.20 | <.001 | 0.365 |
| SUMD | |||||
| Awareness of diseaseb | −21.06 ± 2.39 | 0.32 ± 2.39 | 36.66 | <.001 | 0.400 |
| Awareness of positive symptomsb | −18.57 ± 2.41 | 1.16 ± 2.41 | 30.62 | <.001 | 0.358 |
| Awareness of negative symptomsb | −23.46 ± 2.48 | −4.32 ± 2.48 | 27.33 | <.001 | 0.332 |
| SAIQ | |||||
| Total score | −0.95 ± 1.08 | 1.98 ± 1.08 | 3.45 | .07 | 0.058 |
| Worry | −0.69 ± 0.73 | 0.69 ± 0.73 | 1.65 | .20 | 0.029 |
| Need treatment | −0.01 ± 0.44 | −0.26 ± 0.44 | 0.16 | .69 | 0.003 |
| Presence/outcome | −0.24 ± 0.47 | 0.87 ± 0.47 | 2.60 | .11 | 0.044 |
| BCIS | |||||
| BCIS-R | 0.46 ± 0.71 | 0.27 ± 0.71 | 0.03 | .86 | 0.001 |
| BCIS-C | −0.07 ± 0.70 | 0.54 ± 0.70 | 0.37 | .55 | 0.006 |
| R-C index | 0.92 ± 0.94 | −0.32 ± 0.94 | 0.83 | .37 | 0.015 |
| MARS | |||||
| Total score | 1.64 ± 0.31 | 0.06 ± 0.31 | 12.03 | .001 | 0.177 |
| Subjective response to taking medication | 1.39 ± 0.28 | −0.12 ± 0.28 | 14.27 | <.001 | 0.203 |
| Medication adherence | 0.25 ± 0.08 | 0.19 ± 0.08 | 0.24 | .62 | 0.004 |
| ESRS | −0.33 ± 0.28 | 0.23 ± 0.28 | 1.95 | .17 | 0.034 |
| SRG-PSP | |||||
| Social useful activities | 1.06 ± 0.41 | 0.51 ± 0.41 | 0.85 | .36 | 0.015 |
| Personal and social relationships | 0.18 ± 0.58 | 0.56 ± 0.58 | 0.21 | .65 | 0.004 |
| Self-care | 0.84 ± 0.41 | 0.36 ± 0.41 | 0.65 | .42 | 0.011 |
| Disturbing and aggressive behavior | −0.78 ± 0.39 | −0.35 ± 0.39 | 0.58 | .45 | 0.010 |
| Global score | 2.38 ± 0.98 | 1.56 ± 0.98 | 0.33 | .57 | 0.006 |
| WHOQOL | |||||
| Physical health | 1.25 ± 0.71 | −0.68 ± 0.71 | 3.48 | .07 | 0.058 |
| Psychology | 0.25 ± 0.75 | 1.02 ± 0.75 | 0.49 | .49 | 0.009 |
| Social relationships | 0.69 ± 0.43 | 0.28 ± 0.43 | 0.44 | .51 | 0.008 |
| Environment | 1.19 ± 0.95 | −0.75 ± 0.95 | 1.97 | .17 | 0.034 |
| Total score | 3.81 ± 2.21 | −0.15 ± 2.21 | 1.51 | .22 | 0.026 |
Abbreviations: BCIS, Beck’s Cognitive Insight Scale; BCIS-C, Self-certainty subscale of BCIS; BCIS-R, Self-reflectiveness subscale of BCIS; ESRS, Extrapyramidal Symptoms Rating Scale; MARS, Taiwanese version of Medication Adherence Rating Scale; PANSS, Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale; SAIQ, Self-Appraisal of Illness Questionnaire; SRG-PSP, self-reported version of the Graphic Personal and Social Performance Scale; SUMD, abbreviated version of Scale to Assess Unawareness in Mental Disorder; tDCS, transcranial direct current stimulation; WHOQOL, World Health Organization Quality of Life-BREF.
aValues were adjusted for the covariates of gender and baseline PANSS total score.
bAdditionally adjusted for the covariate of baseline SUMD subscale score of awareness of disease.
P values are in bold if the primary endpoint reaches the significance level of <.05 or the secondary endpoints reach the corrected significance level of <.0129 (false discovery rate method).