Objective: Broadly considered as a transdiagnostic feature of psychological disorders, rumination is associated with slower treatment response, slower rates of recovery, and higher rates of relapse. Accordingly, research has focused on the development of interventions to alleviate rumination. Recently, transcranial Direct Current Stimulation (tDCS) has emerged as a promising tool to do so. Yet, study-to-study variations in stimulation and research protocols preclude a comprehensive understanding of the impact of tDCS on rumination.Methods: We performed a systematic review of sham-controlled tDCS studies targeting rumination among healthy participants or patients with psychiatric disorders, to investigate the effectiveness of tDCS in reducing rumination, and identifying the most desirable combination of stimulation parameters and research protocols to do so.Results: Five out of the nine studies included found a significant effect of tDCS on rumination. However, heterogeneity in results and study designs preclude any definite statement about the impact of tDCS on rumination. Methodological caveats were discussed, and some guidelines for future studies were established.Conclusion: Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation is a promising therapeutic tool to modify transdiagnostic mechanisms like rumination. However, the field needs more extensive and continuous efforts to improve the current methodological caveats and study limitations. This systematic review identifies the existing literature's strengths and weaknesses, providing valuable insights for future efforts.
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