Electric current treatment helps dyslexics with reading

Applying a mild electric current to the brain could help people with dyslexia to read more confidently, a study suggests.

Applying a mild electric current to the brain could help people with dyslexia to read more confidently, a study says.

Dyslexia usually involves having difficulty absorbing written words. While it is not linked to intelligence, it can make learning harder.

Researchers found that by applying a gentle electric current to a specific brain region for 20 minutes, the reading accuracy of adults with dyslexia improved by about 15 per cent.

The effects lasted for about an hour and the best results were seen in subjects who struggled most with written material.

Scientists think the current effectively adjusts a pattern of brainwaves (oscillations) that plays a critical role in processing language. When these waves become abnormal, people with dyslexia might, for example, find it difficult to distinguish between “b” and “d”.

“The results are a proof of concept that dyslexia symptoms could be alleviated by normalising oscillatory activity,” Silvia Marchesotti, of the University of Geneva, who led the study, said. Her team plans to explore whether applying the technique to children could yield longer-lasting improvements.

The study, published in the journal PLOS Biology, appears to provide fresh support for the theory that dyslexia is caused by changes to rhythmic patterns of activity in the brain.

The study involved testing 15 adults with dyslexia and 15 adults who were fluent readers by applying a device that transmitted the current at a frequency of 30Hz to their scalps over their left auditory cortex.

The Times