Brain Stimulation and Cognition in Schizophrenia
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Investigating the effect of transcranial alternating current stimulation on gamma oscillations and visual perception in patients with schizophrenia: A partial-randomized, single-blind, partial-crossover study
IRAS ID
220671
Contact name
Peter Uhlhaas
Contact email
Duration of Study in the UK
2 years, 11 months, 31 days
Research summary
Schizophrenia is a common mental disorder which is associated with a range of complaints, including voice-hearing (hallucinations) and strange thoughts (delusions). These symptoms of psychosis are accompanied by pronounced impairments in cognition which comprise difficulties in memory and attention. A better understanding of cognitive deficits is particularly important because current treatments are unable to improve these processes which result in difficulties of patients’ to organize their lives and maintain employment. \n\nTo advance our understanding about the causes of cognitive deficits in the disorder, the proposed study will examine brain oscillations and their causal role in cognitive deficits in combination with brain stimulation. Brain oscillations have been shown to occur during normal brain functioning and are closely linked to cognition. Moreover, we know from previous studies that patients with schizophrenia show prominent impairments in the generation of these oscillations which could be one reason for their cognitive difficulties. \n\nTo establish a causal link between cognitive deficits and brain oscillations, we will examine the ability of schizophrenia patients to focus their attention while applying a novel brain stimulation approach, transcranial alternating current stimulation (tACS), which involves the application of weak electric fields. This technique has been used in normal participants extensively and is a safe approach to bias the occurrence of brain rhythms which can affect cognitive functions. Before and after brain stimulation, we will obtain measurements of brain activity with Magnetoencephalography to test the effectiveness of brain stimulation on neural oscillations. As a result of this approach, we expect to demonstrate that brain rhythms in patients with schizophrenia can be rescued through this intervention which could potentially constitute a novel approach towards the treatment of cognitive deficits in patients with schizophrenia. \n\n
REC name
West of Scotland REC 5
REC reference
17/WS/0019
Date of REC Opinion
1 Mar 2017
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion