{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,10,13]],"date-time":"2026-10-13T09:47:39Z","timestamp":1791884859147,"version":"4.3.4"},"reference-count":61,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"9","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,16]],"date-time":"2026-09-16T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1789516800000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"},{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,16]],"date-time":"2026-09-16T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1789516800000},"content-version":"tdm","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Brain Sci.","Brain Sciences"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Disorders of consciousness (DoC), including unresponsive wakefulness syndrome\/vegetative state (UWS\/VS) and minimally conscious state (MCS), remain a major challenge in clinical neurology. Therapeutic options are limited, and prognosis is often uncertain. Transcutaneous stimulation of the auricular branch of the vagus nerve (taVNS) is a non-invasive neuromodulation technique that has gained increasing interest as a potential strategy to promote recovery of consciousness. This narrative review summarizes the anatomical and functional rationale of taVNS, compares invasive and non-invasive vagus nerve stimulation techniques, reviews the biological mechanisms underlying its effects, discusses established clinical applications, technological innovations, and available clinical trial evidence. Current data suggest that taVNS is safe and well-tolerated, with preliminary evidence of applicability in DoC, particularly in patients with MCS. However, heterogeneity in stimulation protocols and the limited number of large-scale randomized controlled trials highlight the need for further standardized research.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/brainsci16090979","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,16]],"date-time":"2026-09-16T09:06:37Z","timestamp":1789549597000},"page":"979","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Awakening the Vagus: Transcutaneous Auricular Vagus Nerve Stimulation\u2014A Narrative Review"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"16","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0009-0001-8295-0426","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Lara","family":"Portincaso","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Istituti Clinici Zucchi, Gruppo San Donato, 20841 Carate Brianza, Monza Brianza, Italy"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-9253-6122","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Gaia","family":"Santi","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Neurorehabilitation Unit of the Institute of Lumezzane, Istituti Clinici Scientifici Maugeri IRCCS, 25065 Lumezzane, Brescia, Italy"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0009-0001-6045-5213","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Nicole","family":"Villa","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Neurorehabilitation Unit of the Institute of Lumezzane, Istituti Clinici Scientifici Maugeri IRCCS, 25065 Lumezzane, Brescia, Italy"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-5261-3595","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Davide","family":"Di Pietro","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Neurorehabilitation Unit of the Institute of Lumezzane, Istituti Clinici Scientifici Maugeri IRCCS, 25065 Lumezzane, Brescia, Italy"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,16]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"c3765","DOI":"10.1136\/bmj.c3765","article-title":"The vegetative state","volume":"341","author":"Monti","year":"2010","journal-title":"BMJ"},{"key":"ref_2","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1823","DOI":"10.1172\/JCI29172","article-title":"Tracking the recovery of consciousness from coma","volume":"116","author":"Laureys","year":"2006","journal-title":"J. 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