Neurophysiological Study of tDCS Effects in Healthy Volunteers

Neurophysiological Study of tDCS Effects in Healthy Volunteers

Transcranial direct current stimulation is a tool to modulate cortical excitability.

Anodal transcranial direct currenti stimulation over visual cortex is able to decrease the thermo-nociceptive sensibility and thermonociceptive potentials, whilst cathodal transcranial direct current stimulation has the opposite effect, it decreases VEP amplitude and habituation. This neuromodulation technique is probably a tool in the prevention in episodic and chronic migraine.

The aim of the study is to study short and long term effect of tDCS over pain treshold, contact heat evoked potentials, blink reflex and visual evoked potentials in healthy volunteers.

Inclusion Criteria:

• healthy volunteers

Exclusion Criteria:

• age below 18 or above 65 years
• personal history of recurrent headache or other neurological diseases especially seizures,
• familial history of recurrent headache
• child migraine equivalents (motion sickness, cyclic vomiting or recurrent abdominal pain, somnambulism etc.. . .)
• chronic pain syndromes
• analgesics intake at the time of recording
• contra-indications to tDCS neurostimulation (metal prosthetics in the head or internal stimulation like a pacemaker).