tDCS and Impulsivity

Description

Substance use disorder (SUD) affects more than 23 million Americans and claims more than 70,000 lives annually. With 40-60% relapse rate, SUD patients are high hospital utilizers, 65% of the incarcerated population, and are at high-risk for overdose and deaths. There is a pressing need for research in this area to advance beyond traditional pharmacological and behavioral therapies toward a greater focus on the mechanisms of risk for relapse and to improve personalization for SUD treatment. Neuromodulation has shown promise to stimulate neuronal growth without any of the side effects of medications or electroconvulsive therapy. Using transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) to modulate cortical activity has shown to be a viable therapy in medicine-resistant depression, to reduce opioid cravings, and impulse control. The proposed research plans to recruit 30 subjects with a history of substance use disorder (SUD). This may include a history of addiction to opioids, cocaine, and barbiturates. Addiction to alcohol and cannabinoids (marijuana) will be excluded from this study. Following recruitment and consent, the subject will be administered an EEG, Acceptance Commitment Therapy exercise followed by EEG, and a BIS-11 Survey measuring levels of impulsivity. During the next week, the patient will undergo 5 visits consisting of a pre-EEG, tDCS, and post-EEG. Half of the subjects (n=15) will receive treatment, while the other half will be in a sham group. After the completion of the 5 tDCS visits, the patient will again be administered an EEG, ACT exercise followed by EEG, and a final BIS-11 survey measuring for end impulsivity levels.

Conditions

Substance Use Disorders, Substance Abuse, Substance Use

Study Overview

Study Details

Study overview

Substance use disorder (SUD) affects more than 23 million Americans and claims more than 70,000 lives annually. With 40-60% relapse rate, SUD patients are high hospital utilizers, 65% of the incarcerated population, and are at high-risk for overdose and deaths. There is a pressing need for research in this area to advance beyond traditional pharmacological and behavioral therapies toward a greater focus on the mechanisms of risk for relapse and to improve personalization for SUD treatment. Neuromodulation has shown promise to stimulate neuronal growth without any of the side effects of medications or electroconvulsive therapy. Using transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) to modulate cortical activity has shown to be a viable therapy in medicine-resistant depression, to reduce opioid cravings, and impulse control. The proposed research plans to recruit 30 subjects with a history of substance use disorder (SUD). This may include a history of addiction to opioids, cocaine, and barbiturates. Addiction to alcohol and cannabinoids (marijuana) will be excluded from this study. Following recruitment and consent, the subject will be administered an EEG, Acceptance Commitment Therapy exercise followed by EEG, and a BIS-11 Survey measuring levels of impulsivity. During the next week, the patient will undergo 5 visits consisting of a pre-EEG, tDCS, and post-EEG. Half of the subjects (n=15) will receive treatment, while the other half will be in a sham group. After the completion of the 5 tDCS visits, the patient will again be administered an EEG, ACT exercise followed by EEG, and a final BIS-11 survey measuring for end impulsivity levels.

Impulsivity Mediation Using Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation Paired With Acceptance Commitment Therapy as an Adjunctive Therapy for Substance Use Disorder

tDCS and Impulsivity

Condition
Substance Use Disorders
Intervention / Treatment

-

Contacts and Locations

Tucson

Allison J. Huff, Tucson, Arizona, United States, 85711

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

For general information about clinical research, read Learn About Studies.

Eligibility Criteria

  • * Age: 18-79 years old
  • * Gender: Any
  • * Ethnicity: Any
  • * Diagnosis of substance use disorder and a recent history of substance use (\<24 months last use), but not currently reporting use.
  • * Diagnosis (as defined by DSM-IV) of: any psychotic disorder (lifetime); eating disorder (current or within the past year); obsessive compulsive disorder (lifetime)); mental retardation.
  • * History of drug or alcohol abuse or dependence (as per DSM-IV criteria) within the last 3 months (except nicotine and caffeine).
  • * Subject is on regular benzodiazepine medication which it is not clinically appropriate to discontinue.
  • * Subject requires a rapid clinical response due to inanition, psychosis or high suicide risk.
  • * Neurological disorder or insult, e.g., recent stroke (CVA), which places subject at risk of seizure or neuronal damage with tDCS.
  • * Subject has metal in the cranium, skull defects, or skin lesions on scalp (cuts, abrasions, rash) at proposed electrode sites.
  • * Female subject who is pregnant.
  • * Participants who are not fluent in English will not be included in the trial for safety reasons: a) It is usually not possible to have an interpreter reliably available every weekday for up to 4 weeks and it is not safe to give tDCS to a subject who cannot tell us immediately of any side effects; Note that translation of the proposed ACT activity into English has not been validated and that we cannot be confident that they would be accurately translated and validated.
  • * Minors
  • * Older than 79 years old
  • * last use \>24 months
  • * history of EEG or any electrical implant (i.e. pacemaker)
  • * history of Parkinson's, diagnosis of bipolar, schizophrenia/schizo-affective d/o, OCD, epilepsy, alzheimers
  • * primary drug of choice alcohol or marijuana
  • * taking antipsychotic drugs

Ages Eligible for Study

18 Years to 79 Years

Sexes Eligible for Study

ALL

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Collaborators and Investigators

University of Arizona,

Allison J Huff, DHEd, PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR, University of Arizona

Study Record Dates

2023-10-11