Stroke patients may benefit from transcranial electrical stimulation

IEEE Spectrum : Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) is a touchy subject for neuroscientists. Claims that the technique, in which current flows through electrodes connected to the head, can improve memory and cognition have been met with considerable skepticism. Rather than employing tDCS for cognitive enhancement, scientists from the University of Oxford used it on stroke victims during rounds of physical therapy. The team reports in Science Translational Medicine that over the long term, patients receiving tDCS treatment had a better ability to move their arms than those who received a sham treatment. Compared with the control group, the tDCS patients scored better on two of three measures of recovery three months after treatment and had more activity in the brain regions responsible for motor skills. Future research will be needed to replicate the finding, since the study had only 24 participants.