Enhancing Immediate Memory, Potential Learning, and Working Memory with Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation in Healthy Older Adults

Encarnación Satorres; Juan C Meléndez; Alfonso Pitarque; Elena Real; Mireia Abella; Joaquin Escudero

doi:10.3390/ijerph191912716

Enhancing Immediate Memory, Potential Learning, and Working Memory with Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation in Healthy Older Adults

Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2022 Oct 5;19(19):12716. doi: 10.3390/ijerph191912716.

Authors

Encarnación Satorres¹, Juan C Meléndez¹, Alfonso Pitarque², Elena Real¹, Mireia Abella¹, Joaquin Escudero³

Affiliations

¹ Department of Developmental Psychology, Faculty of Psychology, University of Valencia, Av. Blasco Ibañez 21, 46010 Valencia, Spain.
² Department of Methodology, Faculty of Psychology, University of Valencia, Av. Blasco Ibañez 21, 46010 Valencia, Spain.
³ Hospital General of Valencia, Av. Tres Cruces, 2, 46014 Valencia, Spain.

Abstract

Background: Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) has emerged as a prevention method or minimizer of the normal cognitive deterioration that occurs during the aging process. tDCS can be used to enhance cognitive functions such as immediate memory, learning, or working memory in healthy subjects. The objective of this study was to analyze the effect of two 20-min sessions of anodal transcranial direct stimulation on immediate memory, learning potential, and working memory in healthy older adults.

Methods: A randomized, single-blind, repeated-measures, sham-controlled design was used. The sample is made up of 31 healthy older adults, of whom 16 were in the stimulation group and 15 were in the sham group. The anode was placed on position F7, coinciding with the left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex region, and the cathode was placed on Fp2, the right supraorbital area (rSO).

Results: When comparing the results of the treatment group and the sham group, differences were observed in working memory and learning potential; however, no differences in immediate memory were found.

Conclusion: The results showed that tDCS is a non-invasive and safe tool to enhance cognitive processes in healthy older adults interested in maintaining some cognitive function.

Keywords: healthy older adults; immediate memory; learning potential; tDCS; working memory.

Publication types

Randomized Controlled Trial
Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Aged
Double-Blind Method
Humans
Memory, Short-Term* / physiology
Prefrontal Cortex / physiology
Single-Blind Method
Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation* / methods

Grants and funding

This work was supported by MCIN/AEI /10.13039/501100011033 [Grant PID2019-103956RB-I00] and Conselleria de Innovación, Universidades, Ciencia y Sociedad Digital of Generalitat Valenciana (Spain) [Grant GV/2021/174].