Does a single neurostimulation session really affect mood in healthy individuals? A systematic review

Non-invasive neurostimulation or neuromodulation techniques such as repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) and transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) were welcomed as promising tools for investigating cognitive and mood processes in healthy participants as well as in patients suffering from neuropsychiatric conditions. Due to their rather easy application, both modalities have been used to experimentally examine prefrontal cognitive and emotional control. However, it remains unclear whether a single session of such stimulation may affect the mood of participants in a healthy state. We provide a systematic review of studies reporting the effects of a single session of rTMS or tDCS (…-2014) on self-reported mood in healthy participants. Although early studies reported significant effects on self-reported mood in healthy participants, more recent work investigating mood effects after a single rTMS/tDCS session has failed to find any significant changes in self-reported mood. Therefore it appears that a single session of rTMS/tDCS has no impact on mood in the healthy state.