Influence of a 2-week transcutaneous auricular vagus nerve stimulation on memory: findings from a randomized placebo controlled trial in non-clinical adults.
Clin Auton Res
; 2024 Jul 22.
Article
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| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-39039354
ABSTRACT
PURPOSE:
Memory plays an essential role in daily life and is one of the first functions to deteriorate in cognitive impairment and dementia. Transcutaneous vagus nerve stimulation (tVNS) is a promising therapeutic method; however, its ability to enhance memory is underexplored, especially considering long-term stimulation. We aimed to investigate the effect of a 2-week course of auricular tVNS (taVNS) on memory in a non-clinical population.METHODS:
This single-blind randomized placebo-wait-list controlled trial recruited 76 participants (30 men; mean age 48.32 years) and randomized them into four groups early active/sham taVNS and late active/sham taVNS. Participation in the study lasted 4 weeks; early groups underwent 2 weeks intervention immediately following the first study site visit (days 0-13) and late groups 2 weeks after the first study site visit (days 14-27). Active and sham taVNS included 2 weeks of daily 4-h neurostimulation at the tragus or earlobe, respectively. To assess memory, we used the Rey Auditory Verbal Learning Test.RESULTS:
Two weeks of active taVNS, but not sham taVNS, improved immediate recall and short-term memory score both in early and late groups. Furthermore, the improvements persisted over subsequent follow-up in early active taVNS. Importantly, the effect of active taVNS was superior to sham for immediate recall in both early and late groups. There were no statistical differences in delayed recall.CONCLUSION:
Our findings suggest that taVNS has potential to improve memory, particularly immediate recall, and may be an effective method in preventing memory loss and mitigating cognitive aging.
Texto completo:
1
Colección:
01-internacional
Base de datos:
MEDLINE
Idioma:
En
Revista:
Clin Auton Res
Asunto de la revista:
NEUROLOGIA
Año:
2024
Tipo del documento:
Article
País de afiliación:
República Checa