Abstract: Objective To observe the clinical efficacy and safety of transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) on post-stroke depression (PSD) with Broca's aphasia. Methods From January to December, 2018, 60 patients with PSD and Broca's aphasia were randomly divided into control group (n = 30) and trial group (n = 30). Both groups accepted routine medicine and rehabilitation. The trial group accepted tDCS, anode over left dorsal lateral prefrontal cortex, while the control group accepted sham stimulation. They were assessed with Stroke Aphasic Depression Questionnaire Hospital Version (SADQ-H) and Aphasic Depression Rating Scale (ADRS) before treatment and one, two and three weeks after treatment. They were also assessed with modified Barthel Index (MBI) before and three weeks after treatment. The adverse effects were investigated with questionnaire as the patients finished treatment or withdrew. Results There were three patients withdrawing in the control group, and two in the trial group. The scores of SADQ-H and ADRS decreased with time in both groups (F_time > 100.643, P < 0.001), and the score of SADQ-H was lower in the trial group than in the control group (F_group = 6.891, P = 0.011), but no significant difference was found between two groups in the scores of ADRS (F_group = 2.925, P = 0.093). There was significance of interaction between group and time (F > 13.642, P < 0.001). The difference of MBI was more in the trial group than in the control group (t = 7.016, P < 0.001). There was no significant difference in the incidence of adverse effects between the two groups (P = 0.5). Conclusion tDCS is effective on PSD in patients with Broca's aphasia, without obvious adverse effects.

Key words: post-stroke depression, Broca's aphasia, transcranial direct current stimulation