Intraoperative Peripheral Nerve Stimulation

June 17, 2026 updated by: Wake Forest University Health Sciences

Intraoperative Electrical Stimulation to Accelerate Functional Recovery of Peripheral Nerves After Decompressive Surgery

The purpose of this research study is to find out if using direct electrical stimulation during surgery is safe and helpful for people with nerve problems caused by compressed nerves.

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Withdrawn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.

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 overall objective of this study is to establish the safety and utility of direct electrical stimulation as part of surgical intervention for compressive neuropathies of peripheral nerves and nerve roots. Stimulation will be provided with the Checkpoint Guardian which is a single-use, hand-held device cleared for the stimulation of exposed motor nerves or muscle tissue to locate and identify nerves. The central hypothesis is that electrical stimulation of the peripheral nerve or spinal nerve root at the time of decompressive surgery will improve motor strength and functional outcomes for patients.

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

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 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.

Study Locations

  • United States
    • North Carolina
      • Winston-Salem, North Carolina, United States, 27157
        • Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist

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

  • Adult
  • Older Adult

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Nerve root stimulation arm: Clinical and radiographic findings of compressive neuropathy at the level of the nerve root, including myelopathy and/ or radiculopathy, who are planning for minimally invasive or open spine surgery to decompress the nerve.
  • Peripheral nerve stimulation arm: Compressive peripheral neuropathy, including cubital tunnel, carpal tunnel and peroneal nerve compression who are planning to undergo surgical decompression in the affected upper extremity.

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Patients that had previous nerve transfers for cervical spinal cord injury or tendon transfers, as they would not benefit from this procedure.
  • Any implanted electronic devices, including pacemakers
  • Pregnant or nursing

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: 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: Nerve Root Stimulation Arm
patients undergoing spine surgery for decompression of the nerve root
Device: Nerve Root Electrical Stimulation
in addition to standard of care surgical decompression will receive 10 minutes of electrical stimulation at an amplitude of 2 mA with the Checkpoint nerve stimulator to the nerve root at the time of decompressive surgery
Experimental: Peripheral Nerve Stimulation Arm
patients undergoing peripheral nerve decompression in an upper extremity
Device: Peripheral Nerve Electrical Stimulation
in addition to standard of care surgical decompression will receive 10 minutes of electrical stimulation at an amplitude of 2 mA with the Checkpoint nerve stimulator to the peripheral nerve at the time of decompressive surgery
Active Comparator: Nerve Root Control Arm
patients undergoing spine surgery for decompression of the nerve root
Other: Standard Treatment - Nerve Root
standard surgical treatment when undergoing spine surgery for decompression of the nerve root
Active Comparator: Peripheral Nerve Control Arm
patients undergoing peripheral nerve decompression in an upper extremity
Other: Standard Treatment - Peripheral Nerve
standard surgical treatment when undergoing peripheral nerve decompression in an upper extremity

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
Medical Research Council Scale for Muscle Strength Score
Time Frame: Baseline
The Medical Research Council Scale for Muscle Strength is a 0-to-5 point system that grades muscle power during physical examinations with a higher score indicating normal strength.
Baseline
Medical Research Council Scale for Muscle Strength Score
Time Frame: Month 1
The Medical Research Council Scale for Muscle Strength is a 0-to-5 point system that grades muscle power during physical examinations with a higher score indicating normal strength.
Month 1
Medical Research Council Scale for Muscle Strength Score
Time Frame: Month 3
The Medical Research Council Scale for Muscle Strength is a 0-to-5 point system that grades muscle power during physical examinations with a higher score indicating normal strength.
Month 3
Medical Research Council Scale for Muscle Strength Score
Time Frame: Year 1
The Medical Research Council Scale for Muscle Strength is a 0-to-5 point system that grades muscle power during physical examinations with a higher score indicating normal strength.
Year 1

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
Oswestry Disability Index Score
Time Frame: Baseline, Month 1, Month 3, Year 1
Participants in the nerve root stimulation arm will be given the The Oswestry Disability Index which is a self-administered questionnaire used to measure permanent functional disability caused by low back pain. It consists of 10 items covering pain and physical activities, with scores ranging from 0 (no disability) to 100 (maximum disability).
Baseline, Month 1, Month 3, Year 1
Patient Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS) Score
Time Frame: Baseline, Month 1, Month 3, Year 1
Score range from 20-80 with high scores indicating better function while lower scores indicate poorer function.
Baseline, Month 1, Month 3, Year 1
Disabilities of the Arm Shoulder and Hand Score
Time Frame: Baseline, Month 1, Month 3, Year 1
Participants in the peripheral nerve stimulation arm will be given the Disabilities of the Arm Shoulder and Hand questionnaire which is a 30-item self-reported questionnaire in which the response options are presented as 5-point Likert scales. Scores range from 0 (no disability) to 100 (most severe disability).
Baseline, Month 1, Month 3, Year 1
Short Form Health Survey Score
Time Frame: Baseline, Month 1, Month 3, Year 1
Participants in the peripheral nerve stimulation arm will be given the SF-36. There are 36 items with score range from 0-100 with a higher score indicating a better functional state with few limitations/disabilities while a low score indicates a poorer functional state with more disability and limitations.
Baseline, Month 1, Month 3, Year 1

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.
Wake Forest University Health Sciences

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: Christopher Dibble, MD, Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist

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 (Estimated)

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.
June 1, 2026

Primary Completion (Estimated)

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.
June 1, 2029

Study Completion (Estimated)

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.
June 1, 2029

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).
May 11, 2026

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.
May 11, 2026

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.
May 18, 2026

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.
June 22, 2026

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.
June 17, 2026

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.
May 1, 2026

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.
  • IRB00149854

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

Yes

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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