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Optimizing electrode placement for transcranial direct current stimulation in nonsuperficial cortical regions: a computational modeling study

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Abstract

Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) is a noninvasive brain stimulation technique for modulating neuronal excitability by sending a weak current through electrodes attached to the scalp. For decades, the conventional tDCS electrode for stimulating the superficial cortex has been widely reported. However, the investigation of the optimal electrode to effectively stimulate the nonsuperficial cortex is still lacking. In the current study, the optimal tDCS electrode montage that can deliver the maximum electric field to nonsuperficial cortical regions is investigated. Two finite element head models were used for computational simulation to determine the optimal montage for four different nonsuperficial regions: the left foot motor cortex, the left dorsomedial prefrontal cortex (dmPFC), the left medial orbitofrontal cortex (mOFC), and the primary visual cortex (V1). Our findings showed a good consistency in the optimal montage between two models, which led to the anode and cathode being attached to C4–C3 for the foot motor, F4–F3 for the dmPFC, Fp2–F7 for the mOFC, and Oz–Cz for V1. Our suggested montages are expected to enhance the overall effectiveness of stimulation of nonsuperficial cortical areas.

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Please contact the corresponding author (sangjunlee35@gmail.com) for data requests.

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Acknowledgements

This research was supported by the Original Technology Research Program for Brain Science through the National Research Foundation of Korea (NRF) funded by the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology (NRF- 339-20150006).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Electronic Engineering, Hanyang University, Seoul, Republic of Korea

    Da Som Choi & Sangjun Lee

  2. Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA

    Da Som Choi & Sangjun Lee

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Correspondence to Sangjun Lee.

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Choi, D.S., Lee, S. Optimizing electrode placement for transcranial direct current stimulation in nonsuperficial cortical regions: a computational modeling study. Biomed. Eng. Lett. 14, 255–265 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13534-023-00335-2

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