Table 1.
Meta-analyses of the effects of tDCS.
| Study | Target disease | No. of RCT (n) | Montage (anode/cathode) | Intensity (mA) | Duration (min) | No. of sessions | Outcomes | Effect size (Hedges'g) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Shiozawa et al. (2014) | MDD | 7 RCTs (259) | F3/RSO, F3/F4, F3/F8 | 1–2 | 20–30 | 5–15 | HAMD MADRS |
0.37 |
| Kim et al. (2019) | Schizophrenia (positive symptoms) | 5 RCTs (186) | Between F3 and FP1/Between T3 and P3 | 2 | 20 | 10–15 | AHRS PANSS PSYRATS |
0.86 |
| Kim et al. (2019) | Schizophrenia (negative symptoms) | 7 RCTs (257) | Between F3 and FP1/Between T3 and P3, F3/F4 | 2 | 20–30 | 10–15 | PANSS SANS |
0.41 |
| Narita et al. (2020) | Schizophrenia (cognitive functions) | 9 RCTs (270) | Between F3 and FP1/Between T3 and P3, F3/F4, F3/FP2 | 1–2 | 20–30 | 2–40 | Digit span MCCB, SOPT N-back task 2-back task |
0.49 (working memory) |
MDD, major depressive disorder; RCT, randomized controlled trial; HAMD, Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression; MADRS, Montgomery-Åsberg Depression Rating Scale; AHRS, Auditory Hallucination Rating Scale; PANSS, Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale; PSYRATS, Psychotic Symptom Rating Scales; SANS, Scale for the Assessment of Negative Symptoms; MCCB, MATRICS Consensus Cognitive Battery; SOPT, Self-Ordered Pointing Task.