• The Journal of Korean Physical Therapy
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• v.21 no.4
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• pp.65-71
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• 2009

Purpose: Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) is a useful method for modulating the brain activity. This study compared the effect of continuous and interrupted tDCS using the change in the movement related cortical potential. Methods: Thirty healthy participants (male: 18 and female: 12) were assigned randomly to three groups; sham tDCS, continuous tDCS, which the current continuously flowed for 10 minutes, and interrupted tDCS, which the interrupted current flowed for 10 minutes (repetition: 4sec stimulation and 5sec rest) at an intensity of 1mA with anodal polarity. The effect of tDCS on the right primary motor area was measured from the movement related cortical potential (MRCP) before and after the experiment. MRCP consisted of the bereitshaftspotential (BP) and negative slope potential (NS) at Cz and C4. Results: Continuous and interrupted tDCS showed a significant difference in the changes in the BP, NS at Cz and C4 compared to the sham tDCS. However, there was no significant difference between the continuous tDCS and interrupted tDCS. Conclusion: The change in cortical activity by continuous and interrupted tDCS results from an improvement in the MRCP. An interrupted tDCS may be a safe and useful modality for stimulating the cortical region.