Strategies to implement and monitor in-home transcranial electrical stimulation in neurological and psychiatric patient populations: a systematic review.
Nandini Sandran, Susan Hillier, Brenton Hordacre
PMID 31092267WHAT IT FOUND
Real-time videoconferencing to monitor home-based brain stimulation was linked to high treatment compliance (93-100%) across 19 studies.
Adverse events were mostly minor tingling or itching. No severe stimulation-related injuries occurred, though most included studies had a high risk of bias.
Key findings
01Studies using real-time videoconferencing to monitor each home session achieved protocol compliance rates between 93% and 100%.
02The most common adverse event was tingling during stimulation; excluding one seizure in a sham group, no reported events were severe or required medical attention.
03The majority of included studies had a high risk of bias, reflecting the preliminary nature of current research in this area.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they found
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What it does not show
The review includes only 19 studies, most of which were small case series or preliminary trials. The majority of included studies had a high risk of bias due to less rigorous research designs. The review does not evaluate whether the brain stimulation actually improved patient symptoms, only whether the home delivery method was feasible and safe. Patient populations varied widely (e.g., stroke, depression, tinnitus), so findings may not apply to all groups equally.
Declared interests
Funding was provided by the National Health and Medical Research Council, the University of South Australia, and the Sylvia and Charles Viertel Charitable Foundation.
The easy way to misread this
Do not interpret this review as evidence that home-based brain stimulation treats stroke, depression, or other conditions. The review only assesses whether patients can safely and reliably use the devices at home, not whether the therapy works.