Effects of vestibular rehabilitation combined with transcranial cerebellar direct current stimulation in patients with chronic dizziness: An exploratory study

Abstract Background Vestibular rehabilitation is useful to alleviate chronic dizziness in patients with vestibular dysfunction. It aims to induce neuronal plasticity in the central nervous system (especially in the cerebellum) to promote vestibular compensation. Transcranial cerebellar direct curren...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Brain stimulation 2017-05, Vol.10 (3), p.576-578
Main Authors: Koganemaru, Satoko, Goto, Fumiyuki, Arai, Miki, Toshikuni, Keitaro, Hosoya, Makoto, Wakabayashi, Takeshi, Yamamoto, Nobuko, Minami, Shujiro, Ikeda, Satoshi, Ikoma, Katsunori, Mima, Tatsuya
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adult
Aged
Cerebellum - physiology
Chronic dizziness
Dizziness - rehabilitation
Dizziness - therapy
Female
Humans
Male
Middle Aged
Motor learning
Neurology
Neuronal Plasticity
Transcranial cerebellar direct current stimulation
Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation - adverse effects
Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation - methods
Vestibular Diseases - rehabilitation
Vestibular Diseases - therapy
Vestibular rehabilitation
Vestibule, Labyrinth - physiopathology
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Summary:Abstract Background Vestibular rehabilitation is useful to alleviate chronic dizziness in patients with vestibular dysfunction. It aims to induce neuronal plasticity in the central nervous system (especially in the cerebellum) to promote vestibular compensation. Transcranial cerebellar direct current stimulation (tcDCS) reportedly enhances cerebellar function. Objective/Hypothesis We investigated whether vestibular rehabilitation partially combined with tcDCS is superior to the use of rehabilitation alone for the alleviation of dizziness. Methods Patients with chronic dizziness due to vestibular dysfunction received rehabilitation concurrently with either 20-min tcDCS or sham stimulation for 5 days. Pre- and post-intervention (at 1 month) dizziness handicap inventory (DHI) scores and psychometric and motor parameters were compared. Results Sixteen patients completed the study. DHI scores in the tcDCS group showed significant improvement over those in the sham group (Mann–Whitney U test, p  = 0.033). Conclusion Vestibular rehabilitation partially combined with tcDCS appears to be a promising approach.
ISSN:1935-861X
1876-4754
DOI:10.1016/j.brs.2017.02.005