Frontiers in Human Neuroscience (Mar 2021)
International Consensus Based Review and Recommendations for Minimum Reporting Standards in Research on Transcutaneous Vagus Nerve Stimulation (Version 2020)
- Adam D. Farmer,
- Adam Strzelczyk,
- Alessandra Finisguerra,
- Alexander V. Gourine,
- Alireza Gharabaghi,
- Alkomiet Hasan,
- Alkomiet Hasan,
- Andreas M. Burger,
- Andrés M. Jaramillo,
- Ann Mertens,
- Arshad Majid,
- Bart Verkuil,
- Bashar W. Badran,
- Carlos Ventura-Bort,
- Charly Gaul,
- Christian Beste,
- Christopher M. Warren,
- Daniel S. Quintana,
- Daniel S. Quintana,
- Daniel S. Quintana,
- Dorothea Hämmerer,
- Dorothea Hämmerer,
- Dorothea Hämmerer,
- Elena Freri,
- Eleni Frangos,
- Eleonora Tobaldini,
- Eleonora Tobaldini,
- Eugenijus Kaniusas,
- Eugenijus Kaniusas,
- Felix Rosenow,
- Fioravante Capone,
- Fivos Panetsos,
- Gareth L. Ackland,
- Gaurav Kaithwas,
- Georgia H. O'Leary,
- Hannah Genheimer,
- Heidi I. L. Jacobs,
- Heidi I. L. Jacobs,
- Ilse Van Diest,
- Jean Schoenen,
- Jessica Redgrave,
- Jiliang Fang,
- Jim Deuchars,
- Jozsef C. Széles,
- Julian F. Thayer,
- Kaushik More,
- Kaushik More,
- Kristl Vonck,
- Laura Steenbergen,
- Lauro C. Vianna,
- Lisa M. McTeague,
- Mareike Ludwig,
- Maria G. Veldhuizen,
- Marijke De Couck,
- Marijke De Couck,
- Marina Casazza,
- Marius Keute,
- Marom Bikson,
- Marta Andreatta,
- Marta Andreatta,
- Martina D'Agostini,
- Mathias Weymar,
- Mathias Weymar,
- Matthew Betts,
- Matthew Betts,
- Matthew Betts,
- Matthias Prigge,
- Michael Kaess,
- Michael Kaess,
- Michael Roden,
- Michael Roden,
- Michael Roden,
- Michelle Thai,
- Nathaniel M. Schuster,
- Nicola Montano,
- Nicola Montano,
- Niels Hansen,
- Niels Hansen,
- Nils B. Kroemer,
- Peijing Rong,
- Rico Fischer,
- Robert H. Howland,
- Roberta Sclocco,
- Roberta Sclocco,
- Roberta Sellaro,
- Roberta Sellaro,
- Roberta Sellaro,
- Ronald G. Garcia,
- Ronald G. Garcia,
- Sebastian Bauer,
- Sofiya Gancheva,
- Sofiya Gancheva,
- Sofiya Gancheva,
- Stavros Stavrakis,
- Stefan Kampusch,
- Stefan Kampusch,
- Susan A. Deuchars,
- Sven Wehner,
- Sylvain Laborde,
- Taras Usichenko,
- Taras Usichenko,
- Thomas Polak,
- Tino Zaehle,
- Uirassu Borges,
- Uirassu Borges,
- Vanessa Teckentrup,
- Vera K. Jandackova,
- Vera K. Jandackova,
- Vitaly Napadow,
- Vitaly Napadow,
- Julian Koenig,
- Julian Koenig
Affiliations
- Adam D. Farmer
- Department of Gastroenterology, University Hospitals of North Midlands NHS Trust, Stoke on Trent, United Kingdom
- Adam Strzelczyk
- Department of Neurology, Epilepsy Center Frankfurt Rhine-Main, Goethe-University Frankfurt, Frankfurt am Main, Germany
- Alessandra Finisguerra
- Scientific Institute, IRCCS E. Medea, Pasian di Prato, Italy
- Alexander V. Gourine
- Department of Neuroscience, Physiology and Pharmacology, Centre for Cardiovascular and Metabolic Neuroscience, University College London, London, United Kingdom
- Alireza Gharabaghi
- Institute for Neuromodulation and Neurotechnology, University Hospital and University of Tuebingen, Tuebingen, Germany
- Alkomiet Hasan
- Department of Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, Medical Faculty, University of Augsburg, Augsburg, Germany
- Alkomiet Hasan
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Hospital, LMU Munich, Munich, Germany
- Andreas M. Burger
- Laboratory for Biological Psychology, Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, University of Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
- Andrés M. Jaramillo
- Leibniz Institute for Neurobiology, Magdeburg, Germany
- Ann Mertens
- 0Department of Neurology, Institute for Neuroscience, 4Brain, Ghent University Hospital, Gent, Belgium
- Arshad Majid
- 1Sheffield Institute for Translational Neuroscience (SITraN), University of Sheffield, Sheffield, United Kingdom
- Bart Verkuil
- 2Clinical Psychology and the Leiden Institute of Brain and Cognition, Leiden University, Leiden, Netherlands
- Bashar W. Badran
- 3Department of Psychiatry, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, SC, United States
- Carlos Ventura-Bort
- 4Department of Biological Psychology and Affective Science, Faculty of Human Sciences, University of Potsdam, Potsdam, Germany
- Charly Gaul
- 5Migraine and Headache Clinic Koenigstein, Königstein im Taunus, Germany
- Christian Beste
- 6Cognitive Neurophysiology, Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, TU Dresden, Dresden, Germany
- Christopher M. Warren
- 7Utah State University, Logan, UT, United States
- Daniel S. Quintana
- 8NORMENT, Division of Mental Health and Addiction, University of Oslo and Oslo University Hospital, Oslo, Norway
- Daniel S. Quintana
- 9Department of Psychology, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway
- Daniel S. Quintana
- 0KG Jebsen Centre for Neurodevelopmental Disorders, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway
- Dorothea Hämmerer
- 1Medical Faculty, Institute of Cognitive Neurology and Dementia Research, Otto-von-Guericke University, Magdeburg, Germany
- Dorothea Hämmerer
- 2Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, University College London, London, United Kingdom
- Dorothea Hämmerer
- 3Center for Behavioral Brain Sciences Magdeburg (CBBS), Otto-von-Guericke University, Magdeburg, Germany
- Elena Freri
- 4Department of Pediatric Neuroscience, Fondazione IRCCS Istituto Neurologico Carlo Besta, Milan, Italy
- Eleni Frangos
- 5Pain and Integrative Neuroscience Branch, National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health, NIH, Bethesda, MD, United States
- Eleonora Tobaldini
- 6Department of Internal Medicine, Fondazione IRCCS Ca' Granda, Ospedale Maggiore Policlinico, Milan, Italy
- Eleonora Tobaldini
- 7Department of Clinical Sciences and Community Health, University of Milan, Milan, Italy
- Eugenijus Kaniusas
- 8Institute of Electrodynamics, Microwave and Circuit Engineering, TU Wien, Vienna, Austria
- Eugenijus Kaniusas
- 9SzeleSTIM GmbH, Vienna, Austria
- Felix Rosenow
- Department of Neurology, Epilepsy Center Frankfurt Rhine-Main, Goethe-University Frankfurt, Frankfurt am Main, Germany
- Fioravante Capone
- 0Unit of Neurology, Neurophysiology, Neurobiology, Department of Medicine, Università Campus Bio-Medico di Roma, Rome, Italy
- Fivos Panetsos
- 1Faculty of Biology and Faculty of Optics, Complutense University of Madrid and Institute for Health Research, San Carlos Clinical Hospital (IdISSC), Madrid, Spain
- Gareth L. Ackland
- 2Translational Medicine and Therapeutics, Barts and The London School of Medicine and Dentistry, William Harvey Research Institute, Queen Mary University of London, London, United Kingdom
- Gaurav Kaithwas
- 3Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, School of Biosciences and Biotechnology, Babasaheb Bhimrao Ambedkar University (A Central University), Lucknow, India
- Georgia H. O'Leary
- 3Department of Psychiatry, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, SC, United States
- Hannah Genheimer
- 4Department of Biological Psychology, Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy, University of Würzburg, Würzburg, Germany
- Heidi I. L. Jacobs
- 5Division of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging, Department of Radiology, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, United States
- Heidi I. L. Jacobs
- 6Faculty of Health, Medicine and Life Sciences, School for Mental Health and Neuroscience, Alzheimer Centre Limburg, Maastricht University, Maastricht, Netherlands
- Ilse Van Diest
- 7Research Group Health Psychology, Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, University of Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
- Jean Schoenen
- 8Headache Research Unit, Department of Neurology-Citadelle Hospital, University of Liège, Liège, Belgium
- Jessica Redgrave
- 1Sheffield Institute for Translational Neuroscience (SITraN), University of Sheffield, Sheffield, United Kingdom
- Jiliang Fang
- 9Functional Imaging Lab, Department of Radiology, Guang An Men Hospital, China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences, Beijing, China
- Jim Deuchars
- 0School of Biomedical Science, Faculty of Biological Science, University of Leeds, Leeds, United Kingdom
- Jozsef C. Széles
- 1Division for Vascular Surgery, Department of Surgery, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
- Julian F. Thayer
- 2Department of Psychological Science, University of California, Irvine, Irvine, CA, United States
- Kaushik More
- 3Institute for Cognitive Neurology and Dementia Research, Otto-von-Guericke-University Magdeburg, Magdeburg, Germany
- Kaushik More
- 4Neuromodulatory Networks, Leibniz Institute for Neurobiology, Magdeburg, Germany
- Kristl Vonck
- 0Department of Neurology, Institute for Neuroscience, 4Brain, Ghent University Hospital, Gent, Belgium
- Laura Steenbergen
- 5Clinical and Cognitive Psychology and the Leiden Institute of Brain and Cognition, Leiden University, Leiden, Netherlands
- Lauro C. Vianna
- 6NeuroV̇ASQ̇ - Integrative Physiology Laboratory, Faculty of Physical Education, University of Brasilia, Brasilia, Brazil
- Lisa M. McTeague
- 3Department of Psychiatry, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, SC, United States
- Mareike Ludwig
- 7Department of Anatomy, Faculty of Medicine, Mersin University, Mersin, Turkey
- Maria G. Veldhuizen
- 8Mental Health and Wellbeing Research Group, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Brussels, Belgium
- Marijke De Couck
- 9Faculty of Health Care, University College Odisee, Aalst, Belgium
- Marijke De Couck
- 0Division of Epileptology, Fondazione IRCCS Istituto Neurologico C. Besta, Milan, Italy
- Marina Casazza
- 1Department of Neurosurgery, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
- Marius Keute
- Institute for Neuromodulation and Neurotechnology, University Hospital and University of Tuebingen, Tuebingen, Germany
- Marom Bikson
- 2Department of Biomedical Engineering, City College of New York, New York, NY, United States
- Marta Andreatta
- 4Department of Biological Psychology, Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy, University of Würzburg, Würzburg, Germany
- Marta Andreatta
- 3Department of Psychology, Education and Child Studies, Erasmus University Rotterdam, Rotterdam, Netherlands
- Martina D'Agostini
- 7Research Group Health Psychology, Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, University of Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
- Mathias Weymar
- 4Department of Biological Psychology and Affective Science, Faculty of Human Sciences, University of Potsdam, Potsdam, Germany
- Mathias Weymar
- 4Faculty of Health Sciences Brandenburg, University of Potsdam, Potsdam, Germany
- Matthew Betts
- 7Department of Anatomy, Faculty of Medicine, Mersin University, Mersin, Turkey
- Matthew Betts
- 5Deutsches Zentrum für Neurodegenerative Erkrankungen (DZNE), Magdeburg, Germany
- Matthew Betts
- 6Center for Behavioral Brain Sciences, Otto-von-Guericke University, Magdeburg, Germany
- Matthias Prigge
- 4Neuromodulatory Networks, Leibniz Institute for Neurobiology, Magdeburg, Germany
- Michael Kaess
- 7University Hospital of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland
- Michael Kaess
- 8Section for Translational Psychobiology in Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Centre for Psychosocial Medicine, University of Heidelberg, Heidelberg, Germany
- Michael Roden
- 9Division of Endocrinology and Diabetology, Medical Faculty, Heinrich-Heine University Düsseldorf, Düsseldorf, Germany
- Michael Roden
- 0Institute for Clinical Diabetology, German Diabetes Center, Leibniz Center for Diabetes Research at Heinrich Heine University, Düsseldorf, Germany
- Michael Roden
- 1German Center for Diabetes Research, Munich, Germany
- Michelle Thai
- 2Department of Psychology, College of Liberal Arts, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, United States
- Nathaniel M. Schuster
- 3Department of Anesthesiology, Center for Pain Medicine, University of California, San Diego Health System, La Jolla, CA, United States
- Nicola Montano
- 6Department of Internal Medicine, Fondazione IRCCS Ca' Granda, Ospedale Maggiore Policlinico, Milan, Italy
- Nicola Montano
- 7Department of Clinical Sciences and Community Health, University of Milan, Milan, Italy
- Niels Hansen
- 4Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University of Göttingen, Göttingen, Germany
- Niels Hansen
- 5Laboratory of Systems Neuroscience and Imaging in Psychiatry (SNIPLab), University of Göttingen, Göttingen, Germany
- Nils B. Kroemer
- 6Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
- Peijing Rong
- 7Institute of Acupuncture and Moxibustion, China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences, Beijing, China
- Rico Fischer
- 8Department of Psychology, University of Greifswald, Greifswald, Germany
- Robert H. Howland
- 9Department of Psychiatry, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, UPMC Western Psychiatric Hospital, Pittsburgh, PA, United States
- Roberta Sclocco
- 0Department of Radiology, Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Massachusetts General Hospital, Charlestown, MA, United States
- Roberta Sclocco
- 1Department of Radiology, Logan University, Chesterfield, MO, United States
- Roberta Sellaro
- 2Cognitive Psychology Unit, Institute of Psychology, Leiden University, Leiden, Netherlands
- Roberta Sellaro
- 3Leiden Institute for Brain and Cognition, Leiden, Netherlands
- Roberta Sellaro
- 4Department of Developmental Psychology and Socialisation, University of Padova, Padova, Italy
- Ronald G. Garcia
- 5Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Department of Radiology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Charlestown, MA, United States
- Ronald G. Garcia
- 6Department of Psychiatry, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, United States
- Sebastian Bauer
- Department of Neurology, Epilepsy Center Frankfurt Rhine-Main, Goethe-University Frankfurt, Frankfurt am Main, Germany
- Sofiya Gancheva
- 9Division of Endocrinology and Diabetology, Medical Faculty, Heinrich-Heine University Düsseldorf, Düsseldorf, Germany
- Sofiya Gancheva
- 0Institute for Clinical Diabetology, German Diabetes Center, Leibniz Center for Diabetes Research at Heinrich Heine University, Düsseldorf, Germany
- Sofiya Gancheva
- 7Heart Rhythm Institute, University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, Oklahoma City, OK, United States
- Stavros Stavrakis
- 8Faculty of Biological Science, School of Biomedical Science, University of Leeds, Leeds, United Kingdom
- Stefan Kampusch
- 8Institute of Electrodynamics, Microwave and Circuit Engineering, TU Wien, Vienna, Austria
- Stefan Kampusch
- 9SzeleSTIM GmbH, Vienna, Austria
- Susan A. Deuchars
- 0School of Biomedical Science, Faculty of Biological Science, University of Leeds, Leeds, United Kingdom
- Sven Wehner
- 9Department of Surgery, University Hospital Bonn, Bonn, Germany
- Sylvain Laborde
- 0Department of Performance Psychology, Institute of Psychology, Deutsche Sporthochschule, Köln, Germany
- Taras Usichenko
- 1Department of Anesthesiology, University Medicine Greifswald, Greifswald, Germany
- Taras Usichenko
- 2Department of Anesthesia, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON, Canada
- Thomas Polak
- 3Laboratory of Functional Neurovascular Diagnostics, AG Early Diagnosis of Dementia, Department of Psychiatry, Psychosomatics and Psychotherapy, University Clinic Würzburg, Würzburg, Germany
- Tino Zaehle
- 4Department of Neurology, Otto-von-Guericke University, Magdeburg, Germany
- Uirassu Borges
- 0Department of Performance Psychology, Institute of Psychology, Deutsche Sporthochschule, Köln, Germany
- Uirassu Borges
- 5Department of Social and Health Psychology, Institute of Psychology, Deutsche Sporthochschule, Köln, Germany
- Vanessa Teckentrup
- 6Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
- Vera K. Jandackova
- 6Department of Epidemiology and Public Health, Faculty of Medicine, University of Ostrava, Ostrava, Czechia
- Vera K. Jandackova
- 7Department of Human Movement Studies, Faculty of Education, University of Ostrava, Ostrava, Czechia
- Vitaly Napadow
- 0Department of Radiology, Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Massachusetts General Hospital, Charlestown, MA, United States
- Vitaly Napadow
- 1Department of Radiology, Logan University, Chesterfield, MO, United States
- Julian Koenig
- 7University Hospital of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland
- Julian Koenig
- 8Section for Experimental Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Centre for Psychosocial Medicine, University of Heidelberg, Heidelberg, Germany
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.3389/fnhum.2020.568051
- Journal volume & issue
-
Vol. 14
Abstract
Given its non-invasive nature, there is increasing interest in the use of transcutaneous vagus nerve stimulation (tVNS) across basic, translational and clinical research. Contemporaneously, tVNS can be achieved by stimulating either the auricular branch or the cervical bundle of the vagus nerve, referred to as transcutaneous auricular vagus nerve stimulation(VNS) and transcutaneous cervical VNS, respectively. In order to advance the field in a systematic manner, studies using these technologies need to adequately report sufficient methodological detail to enable comparison of results between studies, replication of studies, as well as enhancing study participant safety. We systematically reviewed the existing tVNS literature to evaluate current reporting practices. Based on this review, and consensus among participating authors, we propose a set of minimal reporting items to guide future tVNS studies. The suggested items address specific technical aspects of the device and stimulation parameters. We also cover general recommendations including inclusion and exclusion criteria for participants, outcome parameters and the detailed reporting of side effects. Furthermore, we review strategies used to identify the optimal stimulation parameters for a given research setting and summarize ongoing developments in animal research with potential implications for the application of tVNS in humans. Finally, we discuss the potential of tVNS in future research as well as the associated challenges across several disciplines in research and clinical practice.
Keywords
- transcutaneous vagus nerve stimulation
- minimum reporting standards
- guidelines & recommendations
- transcutaneous auricular vagus nerve stimulation
- transcutaneous cervical vagus nerve stimulation
