Tests brain stimulation alongside usual medicine for teen depression
Tests a device sending mild electrical currents to the head in teens with depression.
Plain-language title generated from the registry record
Registry title: Efficacy and Safety of Transcranial Alternating Current Stimulation (tACS) Combined With Stable Medication in Adolescents With Depression
Key facts
- Where
- Chongqing, ChinaSee the site
Could this be for you?
Answer for yourself. This is not a decision: only the study team can say whether you can take part.
- Are you between 12 and 18 years old?
Source: NCT07185451, who can take part
Where in China
- The First Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical UniversityChongqing, ChinaTaking people
Questions to ask the study team
- How often do I need to come in, and for how long each time?
- Are travel costs paid?
- Can I keep my own doctor?
- What happens if I want to stop?
Trial details
- Who runs it
- First Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University
- Trial code
- NCT07185451
- Record updated
- 5 October 2026
- Original description
This randomized, double-blind, sham-controlled pilot study will evaluate the feasibility, acceptability, safety, and preliminary clinical effects of transcranial alternating current stimulation as an adjunctive treatment for adolescents with major depressive disorder. The study will also explore changes in clinical symptoms, cognitive performance, and brain function following the intervention.Read full original descriptionShow less
Efficacy and Safety of Transcranial Alternating Current Stimulation (tACS) Combined With Stable Medication in Adolescents With Depression: A Randomized, Double-Blind, Controlled Pilot Study
This randomized, double-blind, sham-controlled pilot study will evaluate the feasibility, acceptability, safety, and preliminary clinical effects of transcranial alternating current stimulation as an adjunctive treatment for adolescents with major depressive disorder. The study will also explore changes in clinical symptoms, cognitive performance, and brain function following the intervention.
Inclusion: Age 12-18 years; Meet DSM-5 diagnostic criteria for a current depressive episode, as confirmed by the K-SADS-PL; Children's Depression Rating Scale-Revised (CDRS-R) score ≥40 at baseline; Stable psychotropic medication treatment for at least 4 weeks prior to enrollment and willingness to continue the same regimen throughout the study.
Exclusion: Previous treatment with electroconvulsive therapy (ECT), transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS), transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS), tACS, or other neurostimulation therapies; Current use of antiepileptic drugs or high-dose benzodiazepines; Psychiatric comorbidities other than anxiety disorders; History of neurological disorders (e.g., epilepsy, traumatic brain injury) or severe physical illnesses (e.g., thyroid disease, lupus, diabetes, significant liver, kidney, or lung impairment, major trauma); History of alcohol or substance abuse or dependence; Depression with psychotic features; Young Mania Rating Scale (YMRS) score >13; Pregnant or breastfeeding females; Contraindications to MRI; Current high suicide risk.