Powered by Blogger.

Blog Archive

Friday, September 25, 2015

By Della Monroe


Transcranial direct stimulation refers to a treatment therapy offered by the passing of direct current through the head of a patient. It is a unique method of treatment which has been known to be helpful to patients with injuries like strokes. The treatment process is not complex and can even be carried out at the home of the patient by an expert therapist. TDCS involves the stimulation of brain neurons with some electric current which is passed from one point of the head, through the brain neurons, and to another point on the opposite of the first point.

Apart from helping with brain injuries like strokes, the therapy has been advanced to help with other problems affecting individuals. The process can be used to help improve the attention span, reduce memory losses and improve problem solving skills among more. All these can be achieved by having the electric current passed through the head of a patient from different points. This ensures that specific head neurons are stimulated to attain a certain effect on a patient.

Electric current can be passed through the brain in two different modes. Each mode brings about a different desired result. Current may be passed from the positively charged electrode which is the anode towards the negatively charged electrode which is the cathode. It can also be passed in the opposite direction which is from the cathode towards the anode.

The electric current used in the process works by increasing or reducing the excitement of neurons in the brains. When certain neurons in the brain are excited or their excitement reduced, they lead to certain behavioral changes on the patient. The neurons excitement can be increased by passing the direct current from the anode to the cathode. Passing the current from the cathode towards the anode causes an opposite effect which is the reduction in excitement of neurons affected.

The procedure requires you to have a power source that can deliver direct and constant current throughout the operation. Electrodes are also required for the process. Depending on the amount of effectiveness you want to achieve, the number of electrodes you need to have will vary. Modern forms of this therapy utilize more than two electrodes to achieve more effectiveness when placed on different parts of the head.

The process will generally start by the therapist identifying the areas on the scalp where the electrodes will be placed. The skin on the scalp is then cleaned to ensure that electrodes used create a solid connection with the skin for good passage of current.

The current can be adjusted gradually. It can be decreased or increased gradually depending on how the therapist desires as well as how the patient responds. It should however be constant throughout and not too high as it can be dangerous.

As technology advances, modern transcranial simulation continues to grow. There are new methods of conducting the stimulation to ensure the patient receives maximum effects from the process. This includes using many smaller electrodes to increase the level of a desired effect.




About the Author:



0 comments:

Post a Comment