Portable Transcranial Electrical Stimulation and Internet-Based Behavioral Therapy for Major Depression Study

ptES is delivered by the Flow device (Flow Neuroscience, Malmö, Sweden), consisting of a one-size-fits-all, transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) headset with circular electrodes (area = 22.9cm2). The anode is positioned over the left prefrontal cortex, and the cathode over the right prefrontal cortex. Current strength is set at 2mA (current density = 0.087mA/cm2) for 30 minutes, daily for 5 continuous days (with a 2-day pause) for the first 3 weeks, with twice-weekly sessions for the following 3 weeks (total of 21 sessions in 6 weeks). Active iBT consists of a smartphone app with an electronic therapist-avatar. The iBT sessions are delivered concomitantly to the tDCS sessions (the tDCS device connects via bluetooth to the participant's smartphone app).

ptES is delivered by the Flow device (Flow Neuroscience, Malmö, Sweden), consisting of a one-size-fits-all, transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) headset with circular electrodes (area = 22.9cm2). The anode is positioned over the left prefrontal cortex, and the cathode over the right prefrontal cortex. Current strength is set at 2mA (current density = 0.087mA/cm2) for 30 minutes, daily for 5 continuous days (with a 2-day pause) for the first 3 weeks, with twice-weekly sessions for the following 3 weeks (total of 21 sessions in 6 weeks). The sham iBT sessions are delivered concomitantly to the active ptES sessions (the ptES device connects via bluetooth to the participant's smartphone app).

Sham ptES for this trial is delivered by the Flow device (Flow Neuroscience, Malmö, Sweden), consisting of a one-size-fits-all transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) headset, with circular electrodes (area = 22.9cm2). The anode is positioned over the left prefrontal cortex, and the cathode over the right prefrontal cortex. The sham protocol consists of a fade-in and fade-out phases of 1mA for 45 seconds, followed by a silent period in between for the remaining 28 1/2 minutes. The sham iBT sessions are delivered concomitantly to the sham ptES sessions (the ptES device connects via bluetooth to the participant's smartphone app).