چکیده:
Background and Aims: Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD) is a chronic psychiatric condition characterized by persistent, excessive, and uncontrollable worry, leading to significant impairments in cognitive and emotional functioning. Previous research has established a strong association between heightened anxiety and deficits in attention and concentration. Neurophysiological evidence suggests that theta wave activity plays a crucial role in attention regulation, while both alpha and theta wave oscillations are implicated in the modulation of anxiety-related neural processes.
Methods: Given these findings, the present study aims to evaluate the effectiveness of transcranial Direct Current Stimulation (tDCS) in modulating the absolute power of alpha and theta brain waves and enhancing visual and auditory attention in individuals diagnosed with GAD. This single-blind, randomized controlled study was conducted in Tabriz between 2023 and 2024, involving 24 patients diagnosed with GAD. Participants, aged 18 to 40 years, were randomly assigned to either the experimental group (n=12) or the control group (n=12) following a comprehensive psychiatric evaluation and screening using the Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7 (GAD-7) scale, which assesses the impact of GAD on personal, social, familial, and occupational functioning.
Results: The findings revealed a significant modulation of alpha and theta wave activity, alongside improvements in visual and auditory attention in individuals with GAD. pecifically, in the experimental group, theta wave power decreased from 5.26 to 2.80 µV², and alpha wave power increased from 9.66 to 5.06 µV². Concurrently, visual attention scores improved from 120.13 to 190.86, and auditory attention scores increased from 118.73 to 150.33 following the tDCS intervention. These improvements were accompanied by statistically significant p-values and large effect sizes.
Conclusion:The results of this study suggest that tDCS effectively modulates alpha and theta brain wave activity, contributing to enhanced attentional and auditory performance in individuals with GAD. These findings provide further support for the potential therapeutic benefits of tDCS in managing anxiety-related cognitive deficits. Future research should focus on optimizing stimulation protocols and investigating the long-term efficacy and sustainability of tDCS effects in clinical settings.
Methods: Given these findings, the present study aims to evaluate the effectiveness of transcranial Direct Current Stimulation (tDCS) in modulating the absolute power of alpha and theta brain waves and enhancing visual and auditory attention in individuals diagnosed with GAD. This single-blind, randomized controlled study was conducted in Tabriz between 2023 and 2024, involving 24 patients diagnosed with GAD. Participants, aged 18 to 40 years, were randomly assigned to either the experimental group (n=12) or the control group (n=12) following a comprehensive psychiatric evaluation and screening using the Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7 (GAD-7) scale, which assesses the impact of GAD on personal, social, familial, and occupational functioning.
Results: The findings revealed a significant modulation of alpha and theta wave activity, alongside improvements in visual and auditory attention in individuals with GAD. pecifically, in the experimental group, theta wave power decreased from 5.26 to 2.80 µV², and alpha wave power increased from 9.66 to 5.06 µV². Concurrently, visual attention scores improved from 120.13 to 190.86, and auditory attention scores increased from 118.73 to 150.33 following the tDCS intervention. These improvements were accompanied by statistically significant p-values and large effect sizes.
Conclusion:The results of this study suggest that tDCS effectively modulates alpha and theta brain wave activity, contributing to enhanced attentional and auditory performance in individuals with GAD. These findings provide further support for the potential therapeutic benefits of tDCS in managing anxiety-related cognitive deficits. Future research should focus on optimizing stimulation protocols and investigating the long-term efficacy and sustainability of tDCS effects in clinical settings.
| بازنشر اطلاعات | |
 |
این مقاله تحت شرایط Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License قابل بازنشر است. |
