The impact of transcranial direct current stimulation on neuromuscular control during directional change
Haoyang Wang1, Hongxiang Zhang1, Junhui Zhu2
1Wuhan Sports University, Wuhan, 430070, China.
Abstract:
The ability to change direction is crucial in soccer; however, evidence regarding acute intervention methods remains limited. Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS), a noninvasive brain modulation technique, has already been shown to enhance muscle function and athletic performance. Still, its influence on athletes' change-of-direction skills-especially at different turning angles-has not been fully clarified. In this study, thirteen male collegiate soccer players were divided into two groups: an experimental group receiving real stimulation and a control group receiving sham stimulation. The experimental group underwent twenty minutes of bilateral anodal tDCS over the primary motor cortex at 2 mA. tDCS significantly improved 45° COD performance (p = 0.027), while no changes were observed at 90°. Electromyography results provided further detail: during 45° turns, the integrated EMG values of the vastus lateralis increased significantly (p = 0.021), and during 90° turns, the root mean square values of the vastus medialis also rose significantly (p = 0.047). Altogether, these findings suggest that tDCS can act as an effective acute intervention to improve athletes' agility in direction changes, offering a practical edge for performance enhancement. This study was prospectively registered in the Chinese Clinical Trial Registry (ChiCTR290251, October 15, 2025).
More Related Videos
13:35Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation and Simultaneous Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging
Published on: April 27, 2014
10:11Updated Technique for Reliable, Easy, and Tolerated Transcranial Electrical Stimulation Including Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation
Published on: January 3, 2020
Related Concept Videos
Relaxation of Skeletal Muscles
When an action potential reaches the axon terminal, it depolarizes the membrane and opens voltage-gated sodium channels. Sodium ions enter the cell, further depolarizing the presynaptic membrane. This depolarization causes voltage-gated calcium channels to open.
Motor Unit Stimulation
The latent period of contraction marks the onset of excitation-contraction coupling, when the action potential propagates across the sarcolemma, preparing the muscle fibers for contraction. As the fibers enter the contraction phase, the...
Muscle Stimulation Frequency
Wave summation
At low firing rates, motor neurons induce individual twitch contractions in muscle fibers. These twitches...
Somatic Spinal Reflexes
One of the most well-known somatic spinal reflexes is the stretch reflex, which is activated by the sudden stretching of a muscle. This reflex involves the activation of specialized sensory receptors called muscle spindles, which are located in the muscle tissue and detect changes in the length and speed of muscle contractions. When a muscle is suddenly...
Smooth Muscle Contraction
The onset of contraction is triggered by an increase in calcium ions within the sarcoplasm, similar to the process in striated muscle. However, smooth muscles have a relatively smaller reservoir of the sarcoplasmic...
Vascular Spasm
