The Effect of Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation on Lower-Limb Endurance Performance: A Systematic Review

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Exercise Physiology
• Sports Science

Background:

• Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) is a non-invasive brain stimulation technique.
• Its application in enhancing physical performance, particularly endurance, is an area of active research.
• Understanding tDCS effects on lower-limb endurance is crucial for optimizing training and recovery.

Purpose of the Study:

• To systematically review the literature on tDCS interventions for lower-limb endurance performance in healthy adults.
• To summarize the effects and underlying mechanisms of tDCS on this performance metric.
• To identify factors influencing tDCS efficacy, such as stimulation protocols.

Main Methods:

• Systematic literature search conducted across major scientific databases (PubMed, Web of Science, EBSCO, ScienceDirect).
• Inclusion criteria focused on studies involving tDCS and lower-limb endurance in healthy adults.
• Risk of bias assessment performed using the Cochrane risk of bias tool.

Main Results:

• tDCS significantly improved time to task failure (TTF) and reduced the rating of perceived exertion during cycling.
• Increased blood lactate accumulation was observed with tDCS.
• tDCS did not consistently improve TTF or reduce fatigue indices during single-joint knee tasks, suggesting task-specific effects.

Conclusions:

• tDCS shows promise for enhancing overall lower-limb endurance performance, particularly in cycling tasks.
• The efficacy of tDCS on knee-specific endurance performance is not uniformly conclusive, potentially due to heterogeneous stimulation protocols.
• Future research should explore optimized stimulation parameters, including multitarget and personalized approaches, to refine tDCS protocols for targeted improvements.