Increasing resilience to stress by home-based transcranial stimulation.

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Mental Health Research
• Preventive Healthcare

Background:

• Mental health disorders like anxiety and depression impact nearly a billion people globally.
• Chronic stress is a significant factor in the development and severity of these conditions.
• Limited access to care necessitates scalable, preventive interventions.

Purpose of the Study:

• To assess the feasibility and safety of a Home-Based transcranial Direct Current Stimulation (HB-tDCS) protocol.
• To explore the preliminary effects of HB-tDCS on stress resilience in healthy middle-aged adults.
• To target the left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (L-DLPFC) for stress resilience enhancement.

Main Methods:

• Thirty-one healthy middle-aged adults self-administered ten HB-tDCS sessions over two weeks.
• Remote monitoring ensured adherence (98%) and tracked safety.
• A stress induction paradigm measured pupillometry, electrodermal activity (EDA), and subjective stress/anxiety pre- and post-intervention.

Main Results:

• HB-tDCS protocol demonstrated high adherence and safety, with minimal side effects.
• A significant reduction in acute stress appraisal was observed post-intervention.
• No significant changes were found in anxiety scores or physiological stress markers (EDA, pupillometry).

Conclusions:

• HB-tDCS is a feasible and safe home-based intervention for healthy adults.
• Preliminary findings suggest potential for reducing acute stress appraisal.
• Further controlled studies are needed to validate effects on anxiety, physiological markers, and clinical populations.