Targeting Auditory Hallucinations With Alternating Current Stimulation (STILL3)

February 15, 2022 updated by: University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill
Investigating the effects of non-invasive transcranial alternating current stimulation (tACS) as a treatment for auditory hallucinations in patients with schizophrenia.

Study Overview

Status

Status

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

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.

Detailed Description

The investigator's primary objective is to provide further evidence for the effectiveness of transcranial alternating current stimulation (tACS) to treat auditory hallucinations and to collect preliminary data on whether maintenance stimulation sessions can prolong the duration of stimulation-induced clinical benefits. The investigators will be looking into effects of tACS to re-normalize pathological alpha oscillations in the dorso-lateral prefrontal cortex (dl-PFC) of patients with schizophrenia or schizo-affective disorder by comparing Auditory Hallucination Rating Scale (AHRS) scores immediately before the first stimulation session, immediately after the last stimulation session, and at the end of the 8 weeks of maintenance sessions. As a secondary objective, the investigators will assess the differential clinical effects of active sham and 10Hz tACS on electroencephalogram (EEG) measures of alpha oscillations. The investigators will also be using source localization techniques in EEG analysis, based on individual locations of the scalp electrodes and anatomical structures with the use of structural magnetic resonance imaging (sMRI).

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.
25

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
    • North Carolina
      • Chapel Hill, North Carolina, United States, 27599
        • UNC Chapel Hill

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 70 years (ADULT, OLDER_ADULT)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Genders Eligible for Study

All

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • DSM-IV diagnosis of schizophrenia, any subtype, or schizoaffective disorder with refractory hallucinations. Duration of illness >1 year
  • 18 - 70 years old
  • Clinical stable for at least 12 weeks i.e. not requiring any hospitalization or a change in level of care
  • On current antipsychotic doses for at least 4 weeks
  • Experience at least 3 auditory hallucinations per week
  • Stable auditory hallucinations as demonstrated by having less than or equal to 20% change in AHRS scores across a 2 week interval during the screening period
  • Capacity to understand all relevant risks and potential benefits of the study and to provide written informed consent, OR has a legal guardian who can provide the informed consent on the patient's behalf with the patient providing written assent to participate

Exclusion Criteria:

  • DSM-IV diagnosis of alcohol or substance abuse (other than nicotine) within the last month or a DSM-IV diagnosis of alcohol or substance dependence (other than nicotine) within the last 6 months
  • Positive urine test of cannabis, cocaine, amphetamine, barbiturates, opiates
  • Current treatment (within 4 weeks) with psychotropic agents including benzodiazepines that are taken on a daily basis (limit prn use to greater than 48 hours before participating in a study session)
  • Medical or neurological illness (unstable cardiac disease, AIDS, malignancy, liver or renal impairment) or treatment for a medical disorder that could interfere with study participation
  • history of traumatic brain injury that required subsequent cognitive rehabilitation, or caused cognitive sequelae
  • A difference of greater than 20% in AHRS scores between screening visits
  • Prior brain surgery
  • Any brain devices/implants, including cochlear implants and aneurysm clips
  • Co-morbid neurological condition (e.g. seizure disorder, brain tumor)
  • Non English speakers
  • Female participants who are pregnant, nursing, or unwilling to use appropriate birth control measures during study participation
  • Anything that, in the opinion of the investigator, would place the participant at increased risk or preclude the participants' full compliance with or completion of the study

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: FACTORIAL
  • 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: tACS Treatment & tACS Maintenance
10 Hz (alpha) tACS with a peak-to-peak amplitude of 2 mA for 20 minutes twice daily during 5 consecutive days of stimulation. 10 Hz (alpha) tACS with a peak-to-peak amplitude of 2 mA for 40 minutes once weekly for 8 weeks of maintenance stimulation.
Device: tACS treatment week
10 Hz sine wave stimulation with a peak-to-peak amplitude of 2 mA for 20 minutes twice for 5 consecutive days.
Other Names:
  • Neuroconn DC Stimulator
Device: Maintenance tACS
10 Hz sine wave stimulation with a peak-to-peak amplitude of 2 mA for 40 minutes once a weekly for 8 weeks.
Other Names:
  • Neuroconn DC Stimulator
SHAM_COMPARATOR: Sham tACS Treatment & Sham tACS Maintenance
10 seconds of ramp in to 1 minute of 10 Hz (alpha) tACS with a ramp out of 10 seconds for a total of 80 seconds of stimulation twice daily during 5 consecutive days of stimulation. 10 seconds of ramp in to 1 minute of 10 Hz (alpha) tACS with a ramp out of 10 seconds for a total of 80 seconds of stimulation once weekly for 8 weeks of maintenance stimulation.
Device: tACS sham week
10Hz sine wave stimulation with a peak-to-peak amplitude of 2 mA for 10 seconds twice a day for 5 consecutive days.
Other Names:
  • Neuroconn DC Stimulator
Device: Maintenance Sham tACS
10Hz sine wave stimulation with a peak-to-peak amplitude of 2 mA for 10 seconds once a week for 8 weeks.
Other Names:
  • Neuroconn DC Stimulator
OTHER: Sham tACS Treatment & tACS Maintenance
10 Hz (alpha) tACS with a peak-to-peak amplitude of 2 mA for 40 minutes once weekly for 8 weeks of maintenance stimulation.10 Hz (alpha) tACS with a peak-to-peak amplitude of 2 mA for 40 minutes once weekly for 8 weeks of maintenance stimulation.
Device: Maintenance tACS
10 Hz sine wave stimulation with a peak-to-peak amplitude of 2 mA for 40 minutes once a weekly for 8 weeks.
Other Names:
  • Neuroconn DC Stimulator
Device: tACS sham week
10Hz sine wave stimulation with a peak-to-peak amplitude of 2 mA for 10 seconds twice a day for 5 consecutive days.
Other Names:
  • Neuroconn DC Stimulator
OTHER: tACS Treatment & Sham tACS Maintenance
10 Hz (alpha) tACS with a peak-to-peak amplitude of 2 mA for 20 minutes twice daily during 5 consecutive days of stimulation. 10 seconds of ramp in to 1 minute of 10 Hz (alpha) tACS with a ramp out of 10 seconds for a total of 80 seconds of stimulation once weekly for 8 weeks of maintenance stimulation.
Device: tACS treatment week
10 Hz sine wave stimulation with a peak-to-peak amplitude of 2 mA for 20 minutes twice for 5 consecutive days.
Other Names:
  • Neuroconn DC Stimulator
Device: Maintenance Sham tACS
10Hz sine wave stimulation with a peak-to-peak amplitude of 2 mA for 10 seconds once a week for 8 weeks.
Other Names:
  • Neuroconn DC Stimulator

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
Mean Auditory Hallucination Rating Scale (AHRS) Score
Time Frame: Baseline, immediately after five days of stimulation, and immediately after the 8th week of maintenance stimulation.
The Auditory Hallucination Rating Scale (AHRS) measures the severity of auditory hallucinations in the past week. The scale assess frequency, duration, location, loudness, belief of origin of voices, negative content, distress, disruption to life, and control over voices. All items are measured on a scale of 0 to 4, with a total possible score of 44. Higher scores indicate higher severity of auditory hallucinations.
Baseline, immediately after five days of stimulation, and immediately after the 8th week of maintenance stimulation.

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
Percentage of Signal Change in the Average Alpha Oscillation Power From Eyes-Open Resting State Electroencephalogram (EEG)
Time Frame: Change from baseline to immediately after five days of stimulation, and immediately after the 8th week of maintenance stimulation.
Eyes-open but at rest EEG data was sampled using a 128-channel Geodesic EEG system. Alpha power spectral density was estimated using the Welch's method (in 2s Hamming windows with 0.5s overlap and 0.1 Hz spectral resolution). Aperiodic components were removed before extracting the individual alpha frequency (IAF; peak with the highest power density between 7 to 12 Hz, with consistent presence during the eyes-open blocks across all sessions). All spectra were visually inspected to confirm IAF choice. We computed the percent signal change of alpha power for each session relative to the baseline session:% change_n=(P_baseline-P_n)/P_baseline where P_n is the alpha power in the n-th session, and P_baseline is the alpha power in the baseline session.
Change from baseline to immediately after five days of stimulation, and immediately after the 8th week of maintenance stimulation.
Average Score on the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scales (PANSS)
Time Frame: Baseline, immediately after five days of stimulation, and immediately after the 8th week of maintenance stimulation.
The Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS) is a 30-item clinician-administered scale. Each item is scored on a seven point scale, representing increasing levels of psychopathology (1=absent, 2=minimal, 3=mild, 4=moderate, 5=moderate severe, 6=severe, 7=extreme). Each item is rated in consultation with the definitions and criteria provided in the manual. Seven items constitute the positive scale, seven items make up the negative scale, and the remaining sixteen make up a general psychopathology scale. Therefore, the potential ranges are 7 to 49 for both positive and negative scales, and 16 to 112 for the General Psychopathology Scale.
Baseline, immediately after five days of stimulation, and immediately after the 8th week of maintenance stimulation.
Brief Assessment Cognition in Schizophrenia (BACS)
Time Frame: Baseline, immediately after five days of stimulation, and immediately after the 8th week of maintenance stimulation.
The Brief Assessment of Cognition in Schizophrenia (BACS) is a clinically administered pen- and -paper battery of neurocognitive tests. The tasks administered in person included verbal memory, digit sequencing, token motor task, semantic fluency, letter fluency, symbol coding, and the tower of London task. The scores on each subtest were not normalized or scaled, values from each test were summed. In this sample the total summed scores ranged 112-296 with a standard deviation of 39.61. Higher values represent greater cognitive performance.
Baseline, immediately after five days of stimulation, and immediately after the 8th week of maintenance stimulation.

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
Electroencephalogram (EEG) Auditory Task
Time Frame: Change across time from baseline measurement to final maintenance stimulation
The investigators will compare alpha oscillation power from resting state EEG recordings on the first and last day of stimulation. The investigators will also collect EEG recordings data at the 1st, 3rd, and final maintenance stimulation visits.
Change across time from baseline measurement to final maintenance stimulation
Auditory Hallucination Rating Scale (AHRS)
Time Frame: Change from Baseline AHRS at final maintenance stimulation session.
The investigators will compare the AHRS scores from baseline across the 8 weeks of maintenance stimulation sessions as an outcome measure.
Change from Baseline AHRS at final maintenance stimulation session.
Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS)
Time Frame: Change from Baseline PANSS at final maintenance stimulation session.
The investigators will compare the PANSS scores from baseline across the 8 weeks of maintenance stimulation sessions as an outcome measure.
Change from Baseline PANSS at final maintenance stimulation session.
Brief Assessment Cognition in Schizophrenia (BACS)
Time Frame: Change from Baseline BACS at final maintenance stimulation session.
The investigators will compare the BACS scores from baseline across the 8 weeks of maintenance stimulation sessions as an outcome measure.
Change from Baseline BACS at final maintenance stimulation session.

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 North Carolina, Chapel Hill

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.
National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH)

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 (ACTUAL)

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.
November 14, 2017

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.
January 5, 2021

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.
January 5, 2021

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).
July 14, 2017

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.
July 17, 2017

First Posted (ACTUAL)

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.
July 18, 2017

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.
February 16, 2022

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.
February 15, 2022

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.
January 1, 2022

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.
  • 17-1364
  • 4R33MH105574-03 (NIH)

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

Yes

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.

Clinical Trials on Schizophrenia

Clinical Trials on tACS treatment week

Search Similar Trials

Sponsors and Collaborators

Medical Conditions

Drug Interventions

Conditions

Rare Diseases

Drug Interventions

Dietary Supplements

Sponsor/Collaborators

Locations

Cookie Settings

We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. For more details carefully read our Privacy and Cookies Policy. ...>>>You can change your preferences or withdraw your consent at any time by deleting the cookies from your website or computer as described in the policy. Please accept it and choose your preferences by ticking the corresponding boxes in the "Manage Settings" section below. Please carefully read our Terms of Service before you proceed with using any part of this website.
«Manage Settings