Assessing the effects of non-invasive transcranial electrical stimulation (tACS and tDCS) on electrophysiological sleep parameters - a systematic review.
Publisher DOI
PubMed ID
42330788
Abstract
Transcranial electrical stimulation (tES), including transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) and transcranial alternating current stimulation (tACS), is considered a safe method to modulate cortical activity and endogenous brain oscillations. Given the therapeutic potential of tES across various clinical conditions and the central role of sleep in restoration and memory consolidation, numerous studies have investigated its effects on sleep and sleep-related parameters, yielding inconsistent results. This systematic review provides an up-to-date synthesis of 51 studies assessing the impact of tES on objectively measured electrophysiological sleep outcomes in both healthy individuals and clinical populations. The reviewed studies demonstrate heterogeneous effects, reflecting substantial variability in study designs. Nonetheless, consistent trends emerge, including reduced NREM1 and increases in total sleep time, NREM2, and NREM3 following tES. Moreover, slow-oscillatory tES increased slow-wave power during sleep. Here we show that tES, particularly slow-oscillatory tES, may positively influence sleep architecture and continuity by modulating endogenous brain oscillations. However, due to heterogeneous stimulation protocols, inconsistent findings, the limited number of significant effects and substantial risk of bias the current evidence remains inconclusive. Well-designed, large-scale trials targeting specific sleep outcomes are needed to clarify the therapeutic potential of tES.
Date Issued
2026-06-11
Publication Type
Article
Subject(s)
Subjects
Brain waves
•
Electric stimulation therapy
•
Electroencephalography
•
Polysomnography
•
Sleep disorders
•
Sleep stages
•
Transcranial direct current stimulation
Language(s)
en
Author(s)
Additional Credits
Journal
Sleep Medicine Reviews
Publisher
Elsevier
ISSN
1532-2955
1087-0792
Access(Rights)
open.access