fMRI Analysis of Aging and Awareness in Conditioning

Johns Hopkins University

Status: Active, not recruiting

Conditions: Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation

Treatments: Device: sham transcranial direct current stimulation; Device: transcranial direct current stimulation

Study type: Interventional

Funder types: Other; NIH

Identifiers

NCT03655769

R01AG021501 (U.S. NIH Grant/Contract)

NA_00045404

Details and patient eligibility

About

Cathodal Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) was administered to the right parietal region in order to determine if this stimulation could disrupt awareness of the conditioned stimulus (CS) - unconditioned stimulus (US) relationship in a classical conditioning experiment.

Enrollment: 16 estimated patients

Sex: All

Ages: 20 to 30 years old

Volunteers: Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion criteria

• Educational attainment of at least eight years and English as the native language
• Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) score of 26
• Normal episodic memory (i.e., CERAD word List Recall > 5)
• Informed consent; 5) age of 20-30

Exclusion criteria

• Disturbed consciousness
• Other neurological or systemic disorder which can cause dementia or cognitive dysfunction
• Prior history of a major psychiatric disorder
• History of definite stroke
• Focal lesion on MRI exam
• Use of anxiolytic, antidepressant, neuroleptic, or sedative medication
• Predominately left-handed
• Has MRI contraindication such as pacemaker, implanted pumps, shrapnel, etc. (full MRI screening form will be filled out).

Trial design

Primary purpose: Basic Science

Allocation: Randomized

Interventional model: Parallel Assignment

Masking: Single Blind

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16 participants in 2 patient groups

sham tDCS

Sham Comparator group

Description:

tDCS delivered for only 30 sec to replicate tingling sensation and blind subject

Treatment:

Device: sham transcranial direct current stimulation

cathodal tDCS

Experimental group

Description:

cathodal tDCS, 2 milliamps (mA), delivered to right parietal region

Treatment:

Device: transcranial direct current stimulation