Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) combined with blindsight rehabilitation for the treatment of homonymous hemianopia: a report of two-cases.
Barbara Maria Matteo, Barbara Viganò, Cesare Giuseppe Cerri and 3 others
PMID 28932016WHAT IT FOUND
Two chronic homonymous hemianopia patients had larger gains on visual field tests during rounds when blindsight training was paired with anodal tDCS than during training-only rounds.
This is a two-case report, so it cannot show tDCS worked.
Key findings
01In patient TA, visual field sensitivity increased 103% after blindsight training with tDCS and only 4% after training without tDCS.
02In patient MR, visual field sensitivity increased 41% after training without tDCS and 85% after training with tDCS.
03No complications or adverse events were reported with rehabilitation treatment and tDCS.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for OTs
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What it does not show
Only two patients were studied, and the authors state the results do not provide conclusive or statistical evidence. tDCS was delivered together with blindsight training, so the contribution of either component cannot be separated. The study did not include sham control, and the authors call for future sham-controlled work. Both patients had ischemic lesions, stable fixation, and no visuo-spatial neglect, so the results may not apply to patients with other visual or neurological profiles. The paper reports changes after two training rounds, not long-term follow-up.
Declared interests
No funding or conflict of interest declaration is included in the supplied text.
The easy way to misread this
Do not read the larger gains in the tDCS rounds as proof that tDCS caused recovery. The study had only two patients, tDCS was given together with blindsight training, and the authors state the results are not conclusive or statistical.