The Effect of Non-Invasive Brain Stimulation on the Downregulation of Negative Emotions: A Meta-Analysis

Brain Sciences

Chunyan Zhu¹  Mengzhu Zhang¹  Kai Wang¹  Shanshan Liu¹  Xiaoming Li¹  Yueling Liu¹  Xinying Liu¹  Qingqing Zhang¹ 

[1] The School of Mental Health and Psychological Sciences, Anhui Medical University, Hefei 230032, China;

关键词: non-invasive brain stimulation;    TMS;    tDCS;    emotion regulation;    meta-analysis;   

DOI  :  10.3390/brainsci12060786

来源: DOAJ

【 摘 要 】

(1) Background: Emotion regulation (ER) is regarded as a core treatment target for depression and other mental illnesses. In recent years, non-invasive brain stimulation (NIBS) has been extensively used as an intervention for mental illnesses, but there has been no systematic review conducted regarding its effect on emotion regulation. Therefore, we conducted a meta-analysis of the effectiveness of NIBS for emotion regulation; (2) Methods: Systematic searches were conducted in Embase, Web of Science, PubMed, and Cochrane Library. We analyzed the effects of NIBS on tasks assessing emotion regulation using a random-effects model, and further explored the moderating role of the following factors on transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) studies by conducting subgroup analyses and meta-regression: target electrode placement, return electrode placement, current intensity, target electrode size, and duration of intervention; (3) Results: A total of 17 studies were included. Our meta-analysis indicated a small but significant effect of NIBS on the downregulation of negative emotions. Separate analyses indicated that repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) had a medium and significant effect on the downregulation of negative emotions, whereas tDCS had no significant effect. Subgroup analyses showed that the effect of tDCS was moderated by target and return electrode placemen; (4) Conclusions: These results indicate that NIBS had a positive effect on the downregulation of negative emotions. The stimulation protocols should be carefully considered and the underlying mechanisms should be further explored.

【 授权许可】

Unknown