Related Experiment Video
Updated: Sep 16, 2025
Modulating Cognition Using Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation of the Cerebellum
Published on: February 15, 2015
Optimisation and development of new tDCS montages to target the cerebellum in schizophrenia: An electrical current
Raquel Guiomar1, Beatriz Catoira2, Paula Castilho1
1University of Coimbra (Portugal), Center for Research in Neuropsychology and Cognitive and Behavioral Intervention (CINEICC), Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, Coimbra, Portugal.
Background:
Schizophrenia is a severe psychiatric disorder that affects individuals' cognitive, social, and emotional functioning. Negative symptoms, such as reduced motivation and social withdrawal, are refractory to available treatments and often contribute to poor functioning and quality of life. The cerebellum has been implicated in the pathophysiology of schizophrenia and is a potential target for treatment with non-invasive brain stimulation, for example transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS). Previous studies have used conventional and high-definition (HD) tDCS montages to target the cerebellum, but these methods have limitations in terms of intensity and focality. Therefore, there is a need to test new cerebellar tDCS montages that optimize both the intensity and focality of the induced electric field.
Objective:
To test two new tDCS montages (PO10Chin and VermisChin) targeting the right posterior cerebellum and vermis and compare their effectiveness with three commonly used cerebellar tDCS montages.
Methods:
Electric field simulations for five tDCS montages were compared using linear mixed-effects models (LMMs) to assess current intensity and focality in clinical and healthy groups.
Results:
The PO10Chin montage showed the highest electric current intensity over the right posterior cerebellum, while VermisChin demonstrated high intensity and focality over the vermis. The HD montage exhibited strong intensity but poor focality, with current hotspots mainly in the occipital cortex. Although the healthy control group was associated with higher current intensity, the effect size was small and therefore can be considered negligible, suggesting that the new montages show similar results for both clinical and non-clinical samples.
Conclusion:
The PO10Chin and VermisChin montages demonstrated highest intensity for right posterior and vermal cerebellum, respectively, compared with the other montages making them promising approaches for targeting the cerebellum in future in vivo studies. Future research should explore the underlying mechanisms, consider safety measures, and evaluate the clinical efficacy of these new montages.
