The various forms of non-invasive brain stimulation and their clinical relevance

As one of the promising upcoming alternatives to traditional drug therapy in central nervous system disorders and psychiatric disease, medical devices for neuromodulation have received a lot of attention. In addition to the invasive neural implant technologies used for deep-brain stimulation, a range of noninvasive brain stimulation (NIBS) techniques have recently been at the center of interest in research and therapy. Here, we provide an overview of the ever-growing family of NIBS methodologies, their clinical applications, and mechanisms of action involved. We suggest that NIBS technologies can be classified based on (1) the underlying technique (magnetic: transcranial magnetic stimulation, or electrical: transcranial electrical stimulation), (2) the targeted neurobiological process (ongoing processing, excitability/plasticity, oscillatory entrainment), or (3) the clinical domain of application (treatment, diagnosis, or prognosis). The current overview should prove valuable in understanding along which dimensions NIBS can be compared with traditional or alternative upcoming CNS modulation technologies.