Efficacy of Hi-tACS for Schizophrenia Negative Symptoms

Efficacy of High-Intensity Transcranial Alternating Current Stimulation (Hi-tACS) in Treating Negative Symptoms of Schizophrenia

The goal of this clinical trial is to investigate whether Hi-tACS is effective and safe in treating negative symptoms of schizophrenia.

Schizophrenic patients will receive treatment (Hi-tACS or shame stimulation) for 2 weeks.

Negative symptoms, cognitive functioning, social functioning, and quality of life of intervention group and control group were assessed and compared between the two groups at baseline, 2 weeks, and 3 months post-intervention.

Objective: To investigate the therapeutic effects and short-term and long-term efficacy of high-intensity transcranial alternating current stimulation (Hi-tACS) on negative symptoms of schizophrenia.

Methods: A randomized controlled design was used, 60 schizophrenic patients who met the enrollment criteria were randomly assigned to either the Hi-tACS intervention group or the sham stimulation control group. Both groups continued their regular medication regimen. The intervention group received continuous current stimulation, while the control group received only 40 seconds of current stimulation per session. The treatment was administered twice daily (morning and afternoon) from Monday to Friday for 2 weeks, with each session lasting 40 minutes, for a total of 20 sessions. Negative symptoms, cognitive function, social function, and quality of life were assessed at baseline, 2 weeks, and 3 months post-intervention.

The primary outcome will be clinical symptoms, the secondary outcome will be the social function and quality of life, and the process measures included social cognition and neurocognition.

Inclusion Criteria:

• Han Chinese population;
• Age ≥ 18 years;
• Education level ≥ 6 years, able to fill out questionnaires on their own, and having sufficient audiovisual level to complete the necessary examinations;
• Meets DSM-5 diagnostic criteria for schizophrenia as assessed by MINI 7.0;
• Residual negative symptoms, with at least one item ≥2 on the negative subscale of PANSS (N1-N7);
• Taking second-generation atypical antipsychotic medication, with no medication or dosage adjustments in the last two weeks
• Patients and guardians agreed to participate in the study and signed an informed consent form.

Exclusion Criteria:

• Meets DSM-5 diagnostic criteria for other mental disorders;
• Total score ≥19 on the PANSS positive subscales (P1-P7) ;
• Severe negative symptoms that prevent the patient from completing the required assessments and interventions;
• Serious physical or central nervous system disease (intracranial infection, intracranial tumor, presence of metal objects in the skull; epilepsy, seizures; history of hydrocephalus or central nervous system tumors; with implanted electronic devices; serious cardiac disease and fitted with a pacemaker, etc.);
• Impaired skin integrity at the site of electrode placement or hypersensitivity to electrode gels or adhesives;
• Mental retardation (Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale WAIS <70) and/or severe cognitive impairment (Brief Mental State Examination MMSE <24);
• Presence of vision and/or hearing problems that prevent completion of relevant tests;
• Alcohol or drug abuse/dependence;
• Pregnancy;
• Those who have participated or are participating in other clinical studies 3 months ago;
• Failure or refusal to sign the informed consent form.