Patient-specific, Effective, and Rational Functional Connectivity Targeting for DBS in OCD (PERFECT DBS)

December 5, 2025 updated by: Cristina Cusin, MD, Massachusetts General Hospital
The study aims to improve patient-specific anatomical targeting of the Deep Brain Stimulation for the treatment of intractable OCD.

Study Overview

Status

Status

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Withdrawn

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.

Detailed Description

Recently, deep brain stimulation (DBS) has emerged as a potentially circuit-specific treatment for intractable OCD. DBS is programmable, allowing the clinician to "reshape" the volume of tissue activated within the standard ventral capsule/ventral striatum (VC/VS) target.

However, VC/VS DBS' efficacy is limited by two major factors: imperfect targeting and a lack of decision rules for stimulation adjustment. The VC/VS target is not a single identifiable structure, but encompasses white matter of the internal capsule and gray matter of the nucleus accumbens (NAc). In current practice for DBS in OCD, all patients are implanted at standard x,y,z coordinates in the VC/VS region. Due to this inter-subject anatomical variability, different fiber tracts are stimulated by ostensibly the "same" parameters in each subject, leading to variable outcomes. This investigation will identify aspects of VC/VS circuitry that may determine clinical response. The hypothesis is that good clinical outcomes may correlate to electrical field capture of either striatal gray matter or of white matter fibers connecting OFC to thalamus.

The current study looks to extend the neuroimaging investigation using anatomic white matter targeting, functional gray matter targeting and changes in changes in regional glucose metabolism of Deep Brain Stimulation (DBS) in severe obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) with the long-term aim of identifying biomarkers that could improve outcomes of this expensive and invasive therapy. Improved imaging would allow surgeons to place the DBS lead closer to the biological targets, thus improving efficacy of the treatment.

The objectives of this study are threefold:

  • Improve the anatomic white matter targeting of the Deep Brain Stimulator (DBS) implant by tracing and identifying fibers of passage within the Ventral Capsule (VC) white matter using advance tractography methods in preoperative diffusion MRI data.
  • Improve functional gray matter targeting by studying the overlap of the volume of tissue activated (VTA) with the VC voxels of maximal preoperative connectivity to the orbitofrontal cortex (OFC)
  • Determine the changes in regional glucose metabolism using preoperative and post-treatment FDG-PET (Positron Emission Tomography) following 3 months of DBS treatment

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.
Observational

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
    • Massachusetts
      • Charlestown, Massachusetts, United States, 02129
        • Massachusetts General Hospital

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

21 years to 64 years (Adult)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Sampling Method

Non-Probability Sample

Study Population

Subjects will be 11 patients with DSM-5-defined OCD of disabling severity, refractory to prolonged treatment trials with conventional medication and behavioral therapy, who would therefore otherwise be candidates for psychiatric neurosurgery.

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  1. OCD, diagnosed by Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-5 (SCID-5), judged of disabling severity with a Yale-Brown Obsessive Compulsive Scale (YBOCS) score of at least 28.
  2. Persistence of severe symptoms and impairment for five or more years despite: i. at least three adequate (≥3 months at the maximum tolerated dose) serotonin transporter inhibitor trials (may use any serotonin or serotonin-norepinephrine inhibitors, but must include a trial of clomipramine) alone or in combination with ii. adequate behavior therapy (≥20 sessions of expert exposure and response prevention; At least 20 sessions of behavioral therapy must be attempted), and iii. augmentation of one of the selective SRIs with a neuroleptic or clonazepam.
  3. Age between 21 and 64 years.
  4. Able to understand and comply with instructions.
  5. Able to give fully informed, written consent.
  6. Approved to be implanted with a DBS device for OCD.

Exclusion Criteria:

  1. Current or past psychotic disorder.
  2. Full-scale IQ below 75 on the Wechsler Abbreviated Scale of Intelligence (WAIS) or cognitive impairment that would affect a participant's ability to give informed consent or provide interview or self-report data reliably, as determined by the consent monitor and the site psychiatrist. A questionnaire assessing consent comprehension will be used with all study subjects, to ensure that they understand the key procedures of the study, and its risks and benefits.
  3. A clinical history of bipolar mood disorder; substance-induced mania is not an exclusion.
  4. Any current clinically significant neurological disorder or medical illness affecting brain function, other than tic disorders or Tourette syndrome.
  5. Any clinically significant abnormality on preoperative magnetic resonance imaging (MRI).
  6. Any labeled DBS contraindication, and/or inability to undergo presurgical MRI (cardiac pacemaker, pregnancy, metal in body, severe claustrophobia), infection, coagulopathy, inability to undergo an awake operation, significant cardiac or other medical risk factors for surgery.
  7. Current or unstably remitted substance abuse, dependence, or a positive urine toxicology screen.
  8. Pregnancy and women of childbearing age not using effective contraception.
  9. Unable to adhere to operational and administrative study requirements (in the investigators' judgment).
  10. Clinical history of severe personality disorder.
  11. Imminent risk of suicide or an inability to control suicide attempts (in the investigators' judgment). History of serious suicidal behavior or one or more interrupted suicide attempts with potential lethality judged to result in serious injury or death.
  12. Diagnosis of body dysmorphic disorder.
  13. Evidence of dementia or other significant cognitive impairment on neuropsychological evaluation
  14. Past or present diagnosis of hoarding disorder.

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

  • Observational Models: Cohort
  • Time Perspectives: Retrospective

Cohorts and Interventions

Group / Cohort

Group / Cohort

A group or subgroup of participants in an observational study that is assessed for biomedical or health outcomes.
OCD Patients with Deep Brain Stimulators
Patients with deep brain stimulation for intractable obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD)

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
Yale-Brown Obsessive-Compulsive Scale (YBOCS)
Time Frame: 6 months
Yale-Brown Obsessive-Compulsive Scale (YBOCS) will be the principal outcome measure to correlate OCD symptoms severity.
6 months
Yale-Brown Obsessive-Compulsive Scale (YBOCS) and Neural Correlates (1)
Time Frame: 6 months
Clinical improvement (change in YBOCS from baseline) will be correlated with the degree of postoperative capture of OFC fibers in the VTA of the active DBS contact
6 months
Yale-Brown Obsessive-Compulsive Scale (YBOCS) and Neural Correlates (2)
Time Frame: 6 months
Clinical improvement (change in YBOCS from baseline) will be correlated with overlap of the volume of tissue activated (VTA) with the identified ventral striatum voxels of maximal preoperative connectivity to the OFC.
6 months
Yale-Brown Obsessive-Compulsive Scale (YBOCS) and Neural Correlates (3)
Time Frame: 6 months
Clinical improvement (change in YBOCS from baseline) will be correlated with changes in regional glucose metabolism in the OFC, caudate, and thalamus.
6 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.
Massachusetts General Hospital

Investigators

Investigators

A researcher involved in a clinical study. Related terms include site principal investigator, site sub-investigator, study chair, study director, and study principal investigator.
  • Principal Investigator: Cristina Cusin, MD, Massachusetts General Hospital

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.
September 15, 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 31, 2022

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 31, 2022

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).
June 26, 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.
August 7, 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.
August 10, 2017

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Estimated)

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.
December 12, 2025

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.
December 5, 2025

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.
December 1, 2025

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.
  • 2017P000882

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

NO

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

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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