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Family caregiver perspectives on administering home-based stimulation in patients with mild cognitive impairment
Camille Bouhour, Stefania V. Konstantopoulou, Timothy Piton, Maxim Tingaud, Cheyenne Mauriello, K. S. Lory, Paul Gerson Unschuld, Lucie Bréchet. Journal of Alzheimer s Disease, 2026-03-15
Topic: Risk, prevention and care in population studies
BackgroundWhile transcranial alternating current stimulation (tACS) shows therapeutic promise for neurological and psychiatric disorders when applied repeatedly, its potential is constrained by multiple laboratory visits.ObjectiveTraining caregivers to administer tACS at home could make therapy more practical, especially for vulnerable populations such as individuals with mild cognitive impairment (MCI). This study aimed to evaluate caregivers' perceptions and experiences of administering home-based tACS to MCI patients under remote clinical supervision.MethodsTwenty family caregivers (M age: 70 ± 12 years, 11 female) were trained to operate a six-electrode tACS device and administered 20 home-based sessions to MCI patients under real-time remote supervision. Quantitative ratings assessed caregivers' confidence, burden, and perceived benefits.ResultsCaregivers demonstrated high confidence in technical procedures (85-100% across tasks) and rated training as very satisfactory. The majority (85%) would feel comfortable administering tACS independently without remote support. Although most caregivers (70%) experienced daily life interference, nearly all (90%) would reuse the system. Clinically, 45% of caregivers observed patient benefits, and 57% of MCI patients believed sessions were beneficial. Effects on quality of life and memory were mixed, with some reporting mild deterioration, possibly reflecting natural disease progression or the double-blind design.ConclusionsCaregiver-administered home-based tACS proved feasible and acceptable among older caregivers (average age 70), despite daily life interference and mixed clinical perceptions. These findings support the expansion of caregiver-delivered protocols while emphasizing the importance of enhanced training and ongoing remote support to reduce the burden and optimize outcomes.Clinical trial registryhttps://clinicaltrials.gov/study/NCT05708001.
Cite this study APA, Vancouver, BibTeX · download .bib or .ris
APA 7th
Bouhour, C., Konstantopoulou, S. V., Piton, T., Tingaud, M., Mauriello, C., Lory, K. S., et al. (2026). Family caregiver perspectives on administering home-based stimulation in patients with mild cognitive impairment. Journal of Alzheimer s Disease. https://doi.org/10.1177/13872877261429857
Vancouver
Bouhour C, Konstantopoulou SV, Piton T, Tingaud M, Mauriello C, Lory KS, et al. Family caregiver perspectives on administering home-based stimulation in patients with mild cognitive impairment. Journal of Alzheimer s Disease. 2026. doi:10.1177/13872877261429857. PMID: 41834385.
BibTeX
@article{bouhour2026-41834385,
author = {Bouhour, Camille and Konstantopoulou, Stefania V. and Piton, Timothy and Tingaud, Maxim and Mauriello, Cheyenne and Lory, K. S. and Unschuld, Paul Gerson and Bréchet, Lucie},
title = {{Family caregiver perspectives on administering home-based stimulation in patients with mild cognitive impairment}},
journal = {Journal of Alzheimer s Disease},
year = {2026},
doi = {10.1177/13872877261429857},
pmid = {41834385},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1177/13872877261429857}
}
Built from the record alzhub holds for this paper, not looked up. Volume, issue and page numbers are not held in the record. The record names 8 authors; APA and Vancouver show the first six, BibTeX and the downloads carry all of them. Check the citation against the original before you use it.
Key findings
- Quantitative ratings assessed caregivers' confidence, burden, and perceived benefits.ResultsCaregivers demonstrated high confidence in technical procedures (85-100% across tasks) and rated training as very satisfactory.
- These findings support the expansion of caregiver-delivered protocols while emphasizing the importance of enhanced training and ongoing remote support to reduce the burden and optimize outcomes.Clinical trial registryhttps://clinicaltrials.gov/study/NCT05708001.
Why it matters
Twenty family caregivers were trained to give home-based transcranial alternating current stimulation to patients with mild cognitive impairment under remote supervision, and most were confident and willing to reuse the system, though most experienced daily life interference. Effects on quality of life and memory were mixed, with some reporting mild deterioration, so this is an early feasibility study of caregiver-delivered stimulation, not proof of benefit.
Study details
- Evidence strengthLow
How this study scored 33/100
Published in a peer-reviewed journal. Scored zero for study design, sample size, effect reported, studied in people and randomised / blinded because the record does not state it.
| Component | Points | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Journal tier | 7 / 10 | Tier 3 — peer-reviewed journal (Journal of Alzheimer s Disease) |
| Journal's citation record | 2 / 4 | Journal of Alzheimer s Disease: journal h-index 218 (OpenAlex, 2026-10-29) |
| Study design | 0 / 12 | No study design recorded — scores zero, not guessed (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Strength of evidence | 1 / 5 | Rated “low” in our summary |
| Peer-review validation | 10 / 10 | Peer-reviewed. Published as an article in a named peer-reviewed journal. |
| How recent | 5 / 5 | 2026 — within 1 year(s) of the newest study here |
| Sample size | 0 / 4 | Participant count not stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Effect reported | 0 / 3 | No effect size reported — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Studied in people | 0 / 3 | Not stated whether this was studied in people — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Randomised / blinded | 0 / 2 | No randomisation or blinding stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Times cited | 1 / 7 | Cited 1 times (OpenAlex, 2026-10-10) |
| Citations per year | 0 / 5 | 0.5 citations a year over 2 year(s) since 2026 |
| Impact for its field and year | 2 / 6 | Cited 2.5× the average for papers of its field and year (OpenAlex FWCI) |
| Cited by studies here | 0 / 6 | No other study in this library cites it |
| Still being cited | 0 / 4 | Cited 1 times in 2024–2026 (2026 still in progress; OpenAlex) |
| Senior author's track record | 1 / 4 | Last-listed author Lucie Bréchet: h-index 19 (OpenAlex, whole career) |
| Institution's track record | 1 / 3 | University of Geneva: institution h-index 1,049 (OpenAlex) |
| Multi-centre collaboration | 1 / 3 | OpenAlex lists 2 institution(s) in 1 country |
| Indexed in PubMed | 2 / 2 | Indexed in PubMed (PMID 41834385) |
| Free to read | 0 / 2 | Behind a paywall — scores zero |
| Total | 33 / 100 | — |
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