Treatments in context: transcranial direct current brain stimulation as a potential treatment in pediatric psychosis

Abstract

Childhood-onset schizophrenia is a chronic, severe form of schizophrenia, and is typically treatment resistant. Even after optimized pharmacotherapy, a majority (over 70%) of these pediatric patients present lasting psychotic symptoms and impaired cognition, necessitating the need for novel treatment modalities. Recent work in transcranial magnetic stimulation suggests moderate efficacy in symptom reduction in adult patients with schizophrenia; however, the transcranial magnetic stimulation treatment is cumbersome for this severely ill population. Transcranial direct current stimulation may provide a safe and effective adjuvant treatment for continued residual symptoms of schizophrenia.

Keywords::

• childhood-onset schizophrenia
• pediatric psychosis treatment
• transcranial direct current stimulation

Financial & competing interests disclosure

The authors have no relevant affiliations or financial involvement with any organization or entity with a financial interest in or financial conflict with the subject matter or materials discussed in the manuscript. This includes employment, consultancies, honoraria, stock ownership or options, expert testimony, grants or patents received or pending, or royalties.

No writing assistance was utilized in the production of this manuscript.