Automatic artifact suppression in simultaneous tDCS-EEG using adaptive filtering

Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) is a non-invasive brain stimulation method that can be used in cognitive and clinical protocols in order to modulate neural activity. Although some macro effects are known, the underlying mechanisms are still not clear. tDCS in combination with electroencephalography (EEG) could help to understand these mechanisms from a neural point of view. However, simultaneous tDCS-EEG still remains challenging because of the artifacts that affect the recorded signals. In this paper, an automated artifact cancellation method based on adaptive filtering is proposed. Using independent component analysis (ICA), the artifacts were characterized using data from both a phantom and a group of healthy subjects. The resulting filter can successfully remove tDCS-related artifacts during anodal and cathodal stimulations.