Transcranial direct current stimulation improves the QT variability index and autonomic cardiac control in healthy subjects older than 60 years

Sep 4, 2026

Uploaded by Noah

Noninvasive transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) was evaluated for its ability to influence cortical functioning and autonomic nervous system responses in older adults. Anodal stimulation over the temporal cortex was compared with sham in 50 healthy participants, stratified by age. Outcomes included QT variability index, short-period ventricular repolarization dispersion, heart-rate variability measures, spectral power, and noninvasive hemodynamic indices. Results showed age-related improvements during active tDCS, including reduced sympathetic activity, lower systemic resistance, enhanced vagal activity, and improved baroreflex sensitivity.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages9

Reading Time23 min

AccessFree to download

Background

Objective

Subjects and methods

Study design and comparisons

Results

Age-group findings during active vs sham

Conclusion

Keywords

Clinical Interventions in Aging downloaded from [https://www.dovepress.com/](https://www.dovepress.com/) For personal use only. Clinical Interventions in Aging Dovepress open access to scientific and medical research Open Access Full Text Article O r I g I n A l r ese A r C h Transcranial direct current stimulation improves the QT variability index and autonomic cardiac control in healthy subjects older than 60 years gianfranco Piccirillo 1 Cristina Ottaviani2 Claudia Fiorucci 1 nicola Petrocchi2 Federica Moscucci 1 Claudia Di Iorio 1 Fabiola Mastropietri 1 Ilaria Parrotta 1 Matteo Pascucci 1 Damiano Magrì 3 1 Department of Cardiovascular, respiratory, nephrological, Anestesiological and geriatric sciences,“sapienza” University, 2 neuroimaging laboratory, IrCCs santa lucia Foundation, 3 Department of Clinical and Molecular Medicine, University of rome “sapienza”, rome, Italy Correspondence: gianfranco Piccirillo Department of Cardiovascular, respiratory, nephrological, Anesthesiological and geriatric sciences,“sapienza” University of rome, 00185 rome, Italy Tel +39 06 4667 0118 email gianfranco.picciri[llo@uniroma1.it](llo@uniroma1.it) Number of times this article has been viewed This article was published in the following Dove Press journal: Clinical Interventions in Aging 16 November 2016 Background: Noninvasive brain stimulation technique is an interesting tool to investigate the causal relation between cortical functioning and autonomic nervous system (ANS) responses. Objective: The objective of this report is to evaluate whether anodal transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) over the temporal cortex influences short-period temporal ventricular repolarization dispersion and cardiovascular ANS control in elderly subjects. Subjects and methods: In 50 healthy subjects (29 subjects younger than 60 years and 21 subjects older than 60 years) matched for gender, short-period RR and systolic blood pressure spectral variability, QT variability index (QTVI), and noninvasive hemodynamic data were obtained during anodal tDCS or sham stimulation. Results: In the older group, the QTVI, low-frequency (LF) power expressed in normalized units, the ratio between LF and high-frequency (HF) power, and systemic peripheral resistances decreased, whereas HF power expressed in normalized units and α HF power increased during the active compared to the sham condition (P,0.05) . Conclusion: In healthy subjects older than 60 years, tDCS elicits cardiovascular and autonomic changes. Particularly, it improves temporal ventricular repolarization dispersion, reduces sinus sympathetic activity and systemic peripheral resistance, and increases vagal sinus activity and baroreflex sensitivity. Keywords: transcranial direct current stimulation, QT variability, heart rate variability, autonomic nervous system, aging Introduction Aging is an important risk factor for coronary disease, heart failure, and sudden cardiac death. According to the classic multifactorial theory proposed by Zipes and Wellens,1 aging brings about a sudden increase in sympathetic activity along with diminished vagal nerve activity. Both changes act singly or in concert as transient events triggering malignant ventricular arrhythmias. For this reason, sudden and unexpected events with high emotional content, such as earthquakes, terrorist attacks, sexual activities, or anger, can lead to sudden cardiac death, especially in older subjects or patients with structural heart disease.2–4 In the last decade, many observations suggested that the insular cortex (IC) has a central role in favoring sudden cardiac death. The right insula is considered as the site where both sympathetic hyperactivity and left ventricular repolarization dispersion originate during acute stroke or transient ischemic attacks.5–8 Other studies indicated that the left IC intervenes in baroreflex and parasympathetic control.6,7,9,10 [submit your manuscript](submit

FAQs

What was the main objective of the study?

To assess whether anodal tDCS over the temporal cortex influences short-period temporal ventricular repolarization dispersion and cardiovascular autonomic control in elderly subjects.

How was the tDCS intervention delivered and compared?

Anodal tDCS over the temporal cortex was administered and compared against sham stimulation in 50 healthy subjects matched on relevant baseline variability and hemodynamic measures.

What cardiovascular and autonomic effects were observed in participants older than 60?

During active tDCS, older subjects showed decreased QTVI and low-frequency–related measures, alongside reduced systemic peripheral resistance and sinus sympathetic activity, with increased vagal sinus activity and improved baroreflex sensitivity.

Sep 4, 2026

Uploaded by Noah