Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation (tDCS)-Enhanced Stroke Recovery

September 18, 2020 updated by: Timea Hodics, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center

TDCS-enhanced Stroke Recovery and Cortical Reorganization

The purpose is to determine whether application of a non-invasive battery powered device called transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) can improve recovery of hand weakness after stroke beyond what is achievable with rehabilitative treatment alone.

Study Overview

Status

Status

Indicates the current recruitment status or the expanded access status.
Terminated

Conditions

Conditions

The disease, disorder, syndrome, illness, or injury that is being studied. On ClinicalTrials.gov, conditions may also include other health-related issues, such as lifespan, quality of life, and health risks.

Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.

Study Type

Study Type

Describes the nature of a clinical study. Study types include interventional studies (also called clinical trials), observational studies (including patient registries), and expanded access.
Interventional

Enrollment (Actual)

Enrollment

The number of participants in a clinical study. The "anticipated" enrollment is the target number of participants that the researchers need for the study.
62

Phase

Phase

The stage of a clinical trial studying a drug or biological product, based on definitions developed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The phase is based on the study's objective, the number of participants, and other characteristics. There are five phases: Early Phase 1 (formerly listed as Phase 0), Phase 1, Phase 2, Phase 3, and Phase 4. Not Applicable is used to describe trials without FDA-defined phases, including trials of devices or behavioral interventions.
  • Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Locations

  • United States
    • Texas
      • Dallas, Texas, United States, 75390
        • University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

The key requirements that people who want to participate in a clinical study must meet or the characteristics they must have. Eligibility criteria consist of both inclusion criteria (which are required for a person to participate in the study) and exclusion criteria (which prevent a person from participating). Types of eligibility criteria include whether a study accepts healthy volunteers, has age or age group requirements, or is limited by sex.

Ages Eligible for Study

18 years to 80 years (Adult, Older Adult)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Genders Eligible for Study

All

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • ischemic stroke causing arm weakness within 5-15 days
  • no other neurological or psychiatric disease, who are able to perform study tasks

Exclusion Criteria:

  • patients younger than 18 or older than 80 years
  • patients with more than one disabling stroke
  • Patients with bilateral motor impairment
  • Patients with poor motivational capacity, history of severe alcohol or drug abuse
  • Patients with severe language disturbances, particularly of receptive nature
  • Patients with serious cognitive deficits (defined as equivalent to a MMS score of 23 or less)
  • Patients with severe uncontrolled medical problems (e.g., seizures, progressive stroke syndromes, severe rheumatoid arthritis, active joint deformity of arthritic origin, active cancer or renal disease, end-stage pulmonary or cardiovascular disease, or a deteriorated condition due to age or others),
  • Patients with unstable thyroid disease
  • Patients with increased intracranial pressure
  • Patients with unstable cardiac arrhythmia
  • Patients with contraindication to TMS or tDCS stimulation (pacemaker, an implanted medication pump, a metal plate in the skull, or metal objects inside the eye or skull, patients who had a craniotomy, skin lesions at the site of stimulation)
  • Patients who are not available for follow-up at 3 and 12 months
  • Pregnancy
  • Patients with contraindication to MRI will not participate in MRI

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Treatment
  • Allocation: Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
  • Masking: Quadruple

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm

Participant Group / Arm

A group or subgroup of participants in a clinical trial that receives a specific intervention/treatment, or no intervention, according to the trial's protocol.
Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.
Experimental: tDCS and occupational therapy
1 mA electric current will be delivered over the lesioned motor cortex for the first 20 minutes during the one hour physical therapy.
Device: tDCS
1 mA electric current will be delivered over the lesioned motor cortex for the first 20 minutes during the one hour physical therapy.
Other Names:
  • Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation
  • Electric stimulation
Sham Comparator: Sham and occupational therapy
Electric current will be ramped up and down over the lesioned motor cortex for the first seconds during the one hour physical therapy.
Device: Sham tDCS
Electric current will be ramped up and down over the lesioned motor cortex for the first seconds during the one hour physical therapy.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Primary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, the planned outcome measure that is the most important for evaluating the effect of an intervention/treatment. Most clinical studies have one primary outcome measure, but some have more than one.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Upper Extremity Fugl-Meyer
Time Frame: 2 weeks
Motor outcome measure for the upper extremity. Scores vary between 0-66, higher values mean better performance.
2 weeks
Upper Extremity Fugl-Meyer
Time Frame: 3 months
Motor outcome measure for the upper extremity. Scores vary between 0-66, higher values mean better performance.
3 months
Upper Extremity Fugl-Meyer
Time Frame: 1 year after stroke
Motor outcome measure for the upper extremity. Scores vary between 0-66, higher values mean better performance.
1 year after stroke

Secondary Outcome Measures

Secondary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, a planned outcome measure that is not as important as the primary outcome measure for evaluating the effect of an intervention but is still of interest. Most clinical studies have more than one secondary outcome measure.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Wolf Motor Function Test
Time Frame: 3 months

The Wolf Motor Function Test (WMFT) is a quantitative index of upper extremity motor ability determined through the use of timed and functional tasks. The score represents the average speed the subject could perform of the timed motor tasks.

The score is the average of the scores calculated from "how many times would a person have completed the task, had he or she been performing it continuously for 60 seconds". The score ranges from 0 to no theoretical maximum, with higher numbers meaning faster/ better performance. (See publication Dr. Hodics et al. 2012.)
3 months

Other Outcome Measures

Other Outcome Measures

For clinical trials, a planned measurement described in the protocol that is used to determine the effect of an intervention/treatment on participants. For observational studies, a measurement or observation that is used to describe patterns of diseases or traits, or associations with exposures, risk factors, or treatment. Types of outcome measures include primary outcome measure and secondary outcome measure.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Visual Analog Pain Scale
Time Frame: during therapy
during therapy
Mini Mental Status Scale
Time Frame: 3 months
Mini Mental Status Scale is a test of cognitive function; it includes tests of orientation, attention, memory, language and visual-spatial skills, scored 0-30, the higher scores mean the better performance.
3 months
NIHSS
Time Frame: 3 months
The National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS) provides a quantitative measure of stroke-related neurologic deficit. The NIHSS was originally designed as a research tool to measure baseline data on patients in acute stroke clinical trials. The score ranges 0-42, a score of 0 represents no deficit, lower score is better.
3 months
Beck Depression Inventory
Time Frame: 3 months
21-item, self-rated scale that evaluates key symptoms of depression. The minimum score is 0 and maximum score is 63. Higher scores indicate greater symptom severity.
3 months
Ashworth Spasticity Scale
Time Frame: 3 months
3 months
Abilhand Questionnaire
Time Frame: 3 months
3 months
Motor Activity Log
Time Frame: 3 months
3 months
fMRI Overactivation in Motor Cortex: Voxel Count and Intensity
Time Frame: 3 months
3 months
Barthel Index
Time Frame: 3 months
The Barthel Scale/Index (BI) is an ordinal scale used to measure performance in activities of daily living. Ten variables describing activities of daily living and mobility are scored. The total score ranges 0-100, a higher number being a reflection of greater ability to function independently following hospital discharge.
3 months
Medical Research Council (MRC) Scale
Time Frame: 3 months
The muscle scale grades muscle strength on a scale of 0 to 5 in relation to the maximum expected for that muscle. The patient's effort is graded on a scale of 0 (no movement) -5 (muscle contracts normally against full resistance).
3 months

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Sponsor

The organization or person who initiates the study and who has authority and control over the study.
University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center

Collaborators

Collaborators

An organization other than the sponsor that provides support for a clinical study. This support may include activities related to funding, design, implementation, data analysis, or reporting.
Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD)

Publications and helpful links

The person responsible for entering information about the study voluntarily provides these publications. These may be about anything related to the study.

General Publications

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start

Study Start

The actual date on which the first participant was enrolled in a clinical study. The "anticipated" study start date is the date that the researchers think will be the study start date.
March 1, 2009

Primary Completion (Actual)

Primary Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention to collect final data for the primary outcome measure. Whether the clinical study ended according to the protocol or was terminated does not affect this date. For clinical studies with more than one primary outcome measure with different completion dates, this term refers to the date on which data collection is completed for all the primary outcome measures. The "anticipated" primary completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the primary completion date for the study.
March 1, 2014

Study Completion (Actual)

Study Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention/treatment to collect final data for the primary outcome measures, secondary outcome measures, and adverse events (that is, the last participant's last visit). The "anticipated" study completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the study completion date.
March 1, 2014

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

First Submitted

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submitted a study record to ClinicalTrials.gov. There is typically a delay of a few days between the first submitted date and the record's availability on ClinicalTrials.gov (the first posted date).
November 2, 2009

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submits a study record that is consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. The sponsor or investigator may need to revise and submit a study record one or more times before NLM's QC review criteria are met. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
November 2, 2009

First Posted (Estimate)

First Posted

The date on which the study record was first available on ClinicalTrials.gov after National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review has concluded. There is typically a delay of a few days between the date the study sponsor or investigator submitted the study record and the first posted date.
November 3, 2009

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

Last Update Posted

The most recent date on which changes to a study record were made available on ClinicalTrials.gov. There may be a delay between when the changes were submitted to ClinicalTrials.gov by the study's sponsor or investigator (the last update submitted date) and the last update posted date.
September 22, 2020

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator submitted changes to a study record that are consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
September 18, 2020

Last Verified

Last Verified

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator confirmed the information about a clinical study on ClinicalTrials.gov as accurate and current. If a study with a recruitment status of recruiting; not yet recruiting; or active, not recruiting has not been confirmed within the past 2 years, the study's recruitment status is shown as unknown.
September 1, 2020

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

Other Study ID Numbers

Identifiers or ID numbers other than the NCT number that are assigned to a clinical study by the study's sponsor, funders, or others. These numbers may include unique identifiers from other trial registries and National Institutes of Health grant numbers.
  • STU 092010-231
  • K23HD050267 (U.S. NIH Grant/Contract)

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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