Efficacy of SLN Block for Chronic Cough

September 25, 2025 updated by: Medical University of South Carolina

Efficacy of Superior Laryngeal Nerve Block for Chronic Cough

This is a research study to find out if superior laryngeal nerve blocks are an effective way to reduce cough when compared to placebo (a substance without any medical value). Eligibility for the study include the following: age >18, cough history suggestive that the nerve to the voice box is overactive, non-smoker, Patients will be followed over time and assigned to either the treatment or placebo group at random. The treatment would be four superior laryngeal nerve blocks and the placebo would be four saline injections (the inactive substance). Study team will measure if the injection improved cough and ask patients to keep a log of symptoms and fill out questionnaires at each visit. After the four injections, patients will follow up in 3 months to see if cough has returned and if so, how severe the cough is.

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.

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.
17

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.
  • Phase 3

Contacts and Locations

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

Study Contact

Study Contact

The name and contact information for the person who can answer enrollment questions for a clinical study. Each location where the study is being conducted may also have a specific contact, who may be better able to answer those questions.
  • Name: Courtney Tipton, MD
  • Phone Number: (843) 792-3531
  • Email: tiptonc@musc.edu

Study Locations

  • United States
    • South Carolina
      • Charleston, South Carolina, United States, 29403
        • Medical University of South Carolina

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 and older (Adult, Older Adult)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • History consistent with neurogenic cough
  • Exclusion of other etiologies (see exclusion criteria)
  • Age ≥ 18

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Current neuromodulating medication use
  • Untreated other etiologies of cough:

Current smoker Current ACE/ARB use Abnormal PFTs within 6 months Uncontrolled OSA Abnormal CXR within 6 months RSI > 13 or RFS >11 AND workup positive for GERD (esophagram, 24-hour pH probe, manometry, EGD)

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: Health Services Research
  • Allocation: Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
  • Masking: Single

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: Steroid-Lidocaine Mixture
Will receive numbing injection, which is a mixture of steroid and lidocaine
Procedure: Superior laryngeal nerve block
Injection of either the steroid-lidocaine mixture or placebo through the skin around where the superior laryngeal nerve is located on the neck. The procedure lasts 5 minutes and is done in the clinic.
Other Names:
  • Injection of steroid-lidocaine mixture vs. placebo (saline)
Procedure: Injection of steroid-lidocaine mixture
Superior laryngeal nerve block using 1mg 1:1 triamcinolone 40mg: 1% lidocaine with 1:200000 epinephrine as the injection.
Other Names:
  • 1mg 1:1 triamcinolone 40mg: 1% lidocaine with 1:200000 epinephrine as the injection.
Placebo Comparator: Placebo
Will receive saline injection as a placebo
Procedure: Superior laryngeal nerve block
Injection of either the steroid-lidocaine mixture or placebo through the skin around where the superior laryngeal nerve is located on the neck. The procedure lasts 5 minutes and is done in the clinic.
Other Names:
  • Injection of steroid-lidocaine mixture vs. placebo (saline)
Procedure: Injection of placebo (saline)
Superior laryngeal nerve block using 1mL of saline as the injection.
Other Names:
  • 1mL of saline as the injection

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
Change in Cough Severity
Time Frame: Change from Baseline to 3 months
Patient will complete the Leicester Cough Questionnaire at each visit. This is a validated survey that measures 3 domains (physical, psychological and social). The total score range is 3-21 and domain scores range from 1-7; a higher score indicates a better quality of life.
Change from Baseline to 3 months

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
Subjective Improvement in Cough
Time Frame: Baseline, 1-4 weeks post-injection, and 3 months post-treatment
Improvement was defined as a 'yes' response at any time point during the study (1-4 weeks or 3 months post-treatment). The reported value reflects the total number of participants who reported improvement at any time point.
Baseline, 1-4 weeks post-injection, and 3 months post-treatment
Summed Daily Change in Subjective Cough Severity
Time Frame: Daily for 3 months post-injection

Participants rate cough severity on a 0-15 visual analogue scale. Scores are recorded daily and analyzed using regression. Higher scores indicate greater severity. VAS is a 0-15 scale completed daily by participants.

Severity is measured using a ruler to determine percentage along the scale. Scores were analyzed using regression models to assess trends over time.
Daily for 3 months post-injection

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.
Medical University of South Carolina

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: Courtney Tipton, Medical University of South Carolina

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.
July 22, 2020

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.
December 30, 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.
December 30, 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 4, 2020

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.
June 4, 2020

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.
June 9, 2020

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.
October 23, 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.
September 25, 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.
September 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.
  • 00096384

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

Yes

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

product manufactured in and exported from the U.S.

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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