To evaluate the effects of afternoon naps and high-definition transcranial direct current stimulation (HD-tDCS) over the left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) in associative memory (AM)
Healthy adults will be randomized into three groups: a sleep with active stimulation (Sleep-A) group will receive active anode HD-tDCS during slow-wave sleep (SWS) of non-rapid eye movement sleep (NREM) at afternoon nap, a sleep with sham stimulation (Sleep-S) group will receive afternoon nap with sham stimulation, and wake with active stimulation (Wake-A) group will receive active anode HD-tDCS during wakefulness. An anode stimulation electrode will be placed in F3 (10/20 system) which intend to target the left DLPFC, and four cathodes will be placed at FCz, AFz, F7, and C5 (10/20 system). The face-word AM task and other multidimensional neuropsychological tasks will be performed before and after afternoon napping.
Study Type
INTERVENTIONAL
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Purpose
HEALTH_SERVICES_RESEARCH
Masking
NONE
Enrollment
87
HD-tDCS is described as a non-invasive form of brain stimulation that uses a low-intensity, direct current applied directly to the head through scalp electrodes
Sham HD-tDCS was delivered using the same protocol and current intensity, but the period of active stimulation was only during the ramp-up and ramp-down periods of 30 and 30 seconds.
Anhui Medical University
Hefei, Anhui, China
face-word assciative memory task score
In the face-cued word association test, participants viewed 20 grayscale photographs of faces on a computer screen, each shown for 3 seconds. Each photograph was paired with a distinct word, which participants read aloud when shown. Participants were instructed to memorize the word linked to each face. One minute later, participants viewed the same 20 faces in a new random order. They were then asked to recall the associated words. Each face was scored as correct or incorrect, and the total number of correct responses formed the AM score.
Time frame: 1 hour after the end of the afternoon nap
Auditory Verbal Learning Test (AVLT) score
There are two parts to the test process: learning phase and delayed recall phase. During the learning phase, subjects were asked to listen to a list of words and recall them. During the delayed recall phase, subjects were asked to recall the list of previously learned words again after a period of time. Scoring usually includes recording the number of correct memories the subject has during the learning phase and delayed recall phase, as well as the types of possible errors (such as forgetting, confusion, etc.). Depending on the subject's performance, learning and memory abilities can be assessed. The normal ranges of immediate memory, delayed memory and recognition memory were 10, 8 and 10 respectively. Higher scores mean a better outcome.
Time frame: 2 hours after the end of afternoon nap
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