PT  - JOURNAL ARTICLE
AU  - Daniella Terney
AU  - Leila Chaieb
AU  - Vera Moliadze
AU  - Andrea Antal
AU  - Walter Paulus
TI  - Increasing Human Brain Excitability by Transcranial High-Frequency Random Noise Stimulation
AID  - 10.1523/JNEUROSCI.4248-08.2008
DP  - 2008 Dec 24
TA  - The Journal of Neuroscience
PG  - 14147--14155
VI  - 28
IP  - 52
4099  - http://www.jneurosci.org/content/28/52/14147.short
4100  - http://www.jneurosci.org/content/28/52/14147.full
SO  - J. Neurosci.2008 Dec 24; 28
AB  - For >20 years, noninvasive transcranial stimulation techniques like repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) and direct current stimulation (tDCS) have been used to induce neuroplastic-like effects in the human cortex, leading to the activity-dependent modification of synaptic transmission. Here, we introduce a novel method of electrical stimulation: transcranial random noise stimulation (tRNS), whereby a random electrical oscillation spectrum is applied over the motor cortex. tRNS induces consistent excitability increases lasting 60 min after stimulation. These effects have been observed in 80 subjects through both physiological measures and behavioral tasks. Higher frequencies (100–640 Hz) appear to be responsible for generating this excitability increase, an effect that may be attributed to the repeated opening of Na+ channels. In terms of efficacy tRNS appears to possess at least the same therapeutic potential as rTMS/tDCS in diseases such as depression, while furthermore avoiding the constraint of current flow direction sensitivity characteristic of tDCS.