The effectiveness of transcranial direct current stimulation of dorsolateral zone of prefrontal cortex on craving in amphetamine abusers

Introduction: According to prevalence of amphetamine abuse and necessity of appropriate treatments, the present research aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of transcranial Direct Current Stimulation (tDCS) of DorsoLateral zone of PreFrontal Cortex (DLFPC) on craving in amphetamine abusers.
Materials and Methods: This clinical research conducted during December 2014-Jun 2015. The statistical populations consisted of all amphetamine abusers with at least 1 year abuse (based on the DSM-IV-TR and laboratory test) that referred to Mehravaran Treatment Center and TC center in Mashhad city. Through convenient sampling method, 21 cases were selected and randomly divided into 3 equal groups (right anode stimulation, left anode stimulation and schema). The questionnaires consisted demographic form, baseline craving for amphetamine abuse and visual scale of induced craving for amphetamine abuse were used for data gathering. Descriptive statistics, covariance were used for data analysis through SPSS version 20.
Results:The results revealed that tDCS on DLFPC reduced induced craving significantly (P=0.002). While right anode/left cathode stimulation had significant effect (P=0.001), left anode/right cathode stimulation had no significant effect on craving (P=0.397). Opposite to induced craving, stimulation of right and left DLFPC associated with significant
reduction in baseline craving among amphetamine abusers (P=0.000).
Conclusion: According to the results of the present research, it seems that right and left transcranial direct current stimulation of dorsolateral zone of preFrontal cortex is effective may be used as effective treatment in reduction of baseline and induced craving among amphetamine abusers.