Efficacy of Anodal Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation (tDCS) on Anhedonia and Symptoms of Combat Related Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)

Document Type : Research Paper

Author

Department of Psychology, Faculty of Educational Sciences and Psychology, University of Birjand, Birjand, Iran.

Abstract

This study aimed to investigate the efficacy of Transcranial Direct Stimulation (tDCS) in the treatment of anhedonia and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). This research was a double-blind experimental study that was conducted with pre-test-post-test design with a control group. The psychiatric clinic of Baqiyatullah al-Azam Hospital was visited by military personnel who were suffering from PTSD from March 2018 to April 2020. This population was included in the statistical analysis. From this population, 33 participants with PTSD were selected using the available sampling method, with 17 participants in the experimental group and 16 in the control group. The control group underwent 10 sessions of sham stimulation, while the experimental group received 10 sessions of anodal tDCS (administered at 2 mA to the left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC). The post-traumatic stress disorder checklist for DSM-5 (PCL-5) and Snaith-Hamilton Pleasure Scale (SHAPS) were used for data collection. The data was also subjected to the multivariate analysis of covariance (MANCOVA) test using SPSS-26 software. The experimental group exhibited a substantially higher rate of reduction in anhedonia (F (1,20) =4.75 p=0.038) and PTSD symptoms (F (1,20) =9.37, p=0.006) compared to the control group, with 41% of patients responding to tDCS treatment. This study demonstrated that tDCS could be considered as a novel and complementary treatment technique for the treatment of anhedonia and PTSD symptoms in militaries with post-traumatic stress disorder.

Keywords

References

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Journal of Applied Psychological Research
Volume 16, Issue 2
March 2025
Pages 65-79

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History

  • Receive Date: 08 May 2023
  • Revise Date: 05 June 2023
  • Accept Date: 09 July 2023
  • First Publish Date: 05 November 2023
  • Publish Date: 22 June 2025

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