Pilot Study of Acute Stroke Using the Brainpulse™

Non-Blinded Data Collection Pilot Study of Acute Stroke Using the Brainpulse™

The aim of this pilot study is to collect data on stroke patients and non-stroke patients or healthy volunteers using the BrainPulse Stroke Monitor. Subject characteristics, diagnostic procedures and clinical outcomes will be documented as part of the data collected to assess the clinical utility of the BrainPulse device. All eligible patients and healthy volunteers will be enrolled and assigned to a study Group based on confirmation of their diagnosis: Acute Ischemic Stroke, Hemorrhagic Stroke, Transient Ischemic Attack or No Stroke. The data collected from the BrainPulse will be compared across the different study groups in an attempt to distinguish stroke from other non-stroke conditions that present with similar symptoms and LVO from non-LVO types of strokes. Further assessments will also be made to evaluate if the BrainPulse can identify the presence of stroke.

Study Overview

• Status: Completed
• Conditions: Stroke, Acute
• Intervention / Treatment: Device: BrainPulse Device

Detailed Description

The study is a prospective, non-randomized, non-blinded, hospital-based study of patients presenting with acute stroke symptoms within 48 hours of symptom onset (last known normal or actual time) as evidenced by radiological imaging. The study will be executed in two parts: Study Phase I and Study Phase II. Each study phase will consist of the same sequence of events and study procedures. The first part of the study is designed to enroll a smaller sample size to evaluate the feasibility of incorporating the BrainPulse device in the Stroke patient care workflow.

Patients will be consecutively recruited and once patients have met eligibility, they will be assigned to one of the four study Groups based on their confirmed clinical diagnosis. Each subject will complete one BrainPulse recording before neuro-intervention and within four hours of IV pharmacologic intervention. All subjects will also complete comprehensive neurological, cognitive and NIH Stroke Scale (NIHSS) assessments. Additionally, Ischemic Stroke subjects (Group A) that receive neuro-intervention will complete one additional, and optional BrainPulse recording along with a neurological exam after intervention. If these procedures have been completed as part of standard of care, the data can be captured directly from the medical records. If such procedures were not conducted as part of hospital's standard of care, they will need to be completed for the purpose of the study.

• Study Type: Observational
• Enrollment (Actual): 252

Contacts and Locations

Study Locations

• United States
  • Illinois
    • Arlington Heights, Illinois, United States, 60005
      • Northwest Community Healthcare
    • Evanston, Illinois, United States, 60201
      • Northshore University Health System
  • Ohio
    • Cincinnati, Ohio, United States, 45267-0769
      • University of Cincinnati, Department of Emergency Medicine

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: 18 years to 89 years (Adult, Older Adult)
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: Yes

• Sampling Method: Non-Probability Sample

Study Population

The study is expected to enroll up to 289 subjects in total for both parts of the study. During Part I of the study, 40 subjects are expected to be enrolled, of which 20 participants will be assigned to Group A, 5 participants assigned to Group B, 5 participants assigned to Group C, 5 participants assigned to Group D and up to 5 screen failures. In the second part of the study, up to 249 subjects are expected to be enrolled, of which 57 participants will be assigned to Group A1, 57 participants assigned to Group A2, 36 participants assigned to Group D1, and up to 62 participants assigned to group D2, and up to 37 screen failures.

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

1. Male or female subjects 18 years or older
2. Patient undergoes or will undergo radiological imaging (CT/MR) as part of stroke evaluation (n/a for Group D2)

3. Demonstrated at least 1 of the following symptoms (n/a for Group D2):

   1. Hemiparesis, monoparesis, or quadriparesis
   2. Hemisensory deficits
   3. Monocular/binocular visual loss
   4. Visual field deficits
   5. Diplopia
   6. Dysarthria
   7. Facial droop
   8. Ataxia
   9. Vertigo
   10. Aphasia
   11. Severe and sudden onset of headache
   12. Nausea, and/or vomiting
   13. Dizziness
   14. Altered or loss of consciousness
   15. Imbalance/ Incoordination
4. Last known normal or actual time point, whichever is known, since commencement of symptoms < 48 hours prior to enrollment (n/a for Group D2)
5. Consent procedures followed per applicable IRB approvals at site

Exclusion Criteria:

1. Not a candidate for radiological imaging (CT/MR) or angiography (CTA/MRA/DSA) (n/a for Group D2)
2. Patient meets the hospital criteria for brain death
3. Wound or laceration on the head in the area of one of the BrainPulse sensors that would impede use of the BrainPulse device
4. Any serious medical, social or psychological condition that in the opinion of the investigator would disqualify a patient from participation
5. Symptoms due to head trauma
6. IV tPA commenced or completed > 4 hours ago
7. Any neuro-intervention commenced or completed between admission and time of enrollment
8. If does not satisfy the eligibility criteria for groups A, B, C, and D.

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

• Observational Models: Cohort
• Time Perspectives: Prospective

Number of groups / cohorts

4

Cohorts and Interventions

Group / Cohort	Intervention / Treatment
Group B: Hemorrhagic Stroke; Subjects in this group will present with symptoms similar to Group A. In addition, they will present with clinical symptoms consistent of increased intracranial pressure such as nausea, vomiting, loss of consciousness and severe headache. In order for a subject to be eligible, the hemorrhage will be limited to primarily intracerebral hemorrhage with a minimum volume of 10mL. Subarachnoid hemorrhage and intraventricular hemorrhage may also be present as incidental findings. Since it is unlikely that these subjects proceed for neuro-intervention, they will not have a follow-up BrainPulse recording and they will be exited after completing study procedures.	Device: BrainPulse Device; The BrainPulse is used on a patient's head to non-invasively detect, amplify and capture the skull motion caused by pulsatile cerebral blood flow from the cardiac cycle. The BrainPulse consists of a reusable headset that contains the accelerometers used to measure motion caused by pulsatile cerebral blood flow. The system is powered by a rechargeable battery pack. The headset is placed on the subject's head and outputs data to a data collector that forwards the data to the computer. Each accelerometer has an attached tip that makes contact with the subject's head through hair. The headset also includes a photoplethysmograph (PPG) that simultaneously captures the subject's heart-rate information. There is no energy delivered to the brain or subject by these highly sensitive sensors.
Group C: Transient Ischemic Attack; Subjects in this group will present with focal neurological symptoms consistent with stroke. In order for subjects to be eligible for this group, enrollment will need to be within 6 hours of resolution of symptoms along with a confirmation of TIA by treating team. In addition, initial and follow-up radiological imaging needs to show that there are no signs of ischemic stroke or hemorrhage.	Device: BrainPulse Device; The BrainPulse is used on a patient's head to non-invasively detect, amplify and capture the skull motion caused by pulsatile cerebral blood flow from the cardiac cycle. The BrainPulse consists of a reusable headset that contains the accelerometers used to measure motion caused by pulsatile cerebral blood flow. The system is powered by a rechargeable battery pack. The headset is placed on the subject's head and outputs data to a data collector that forwards the data to the computer. Each accelerometer has an attached tip that makes contact with the subject's head through hair. The headset also includes a photoplethysmograph (PPG) that simultaneously captures the subject's heart-rate information. There is no energy delivered to the brain or subject by these highly sensitive sensors.
Group A: Severe Ischemic Stroke; Group A will include subjects that present with focal neurological deficits and clinical features consistent with ischemic stroke. Subjects in this group will have a clinical presentation consistent with ischemic stroke and confirmed by radiological imaging. Subjects in this group need to present with an NIHSS score of greater than or equal to 6. Group A is divided into 2 study sub groups of A1 and A2. Group A1 are subjects confirmed with acute ischemic stroke secondary to LVO by imaging. Group A2 are subjects that present with symptoms of acute ischemic stroke and confirmed to not have an LVO ischemic stroke.	Device: BrainPulse Device; The BrainPulse is used on a patient's head to non-invasively detect, amplify and capture the skull motion caused by pulsatile cerebral blood flow from the cardiac cycle. The BrainPulse consists of a reusable headset that contains the accelerometers used to measure motion caused by pulsatile cerebral blood flow. The system is powered by a rechargeable battery pack. The headset is placed on the subject's head and outputs data to a data collector that forwards the data to the computer. Each accelerometer has an attached tip that makes contact with the subject's head through hair. The headset also includes a photoplethysmograph (PPG) that simultaneously captures the subject's heart-rate information. There is no energy delivered to the brain or subject by these highly sensitive sensors.
Group D: Non-Stroke Subjects; Group D will include control subjects that do not have an acute stroke. They will be sub-divided into Group D1 and D2. Group D1 subjects will be stroke mimics that present with stroke-like symptoms but do not have a diagnosis of stroke or TIA. In order to qualify for this sub group, subjects will also need to show evidence of no stroke on radiological imaging (CT and/or MRI). Diagnoses in this group may include seizure, systemic infection, brain tumor, metabolic disorder, positional vertigo, hemiplegic migraine, encephalopathy, cranial nerve injury, spinal cord injury, brachial/sacral plexus injury, peripheral nerve injury, etc. Group D2 subjects will be non-stroke controls that are either patients that present to the hospital for a reason unrelated to stroke and no stroke symptoms or healthy volunteers that are non-clinical visitors or hospital staff. Subjects must have no stroke-like symptoms or suspicion of stroke by the treatment or study team.	Device: BrainPulse Device; The BrainPulse is used on a patient's head to non-invasively detect, amplify and capture the skull motion caused by pulsatile cerebral blood flow from the cardiac cycle. The BrainPulse consists of a reusable headset that contains the accelerometers used to measure motion caused by pulsatile cerebral blood flow. The system is powered by a rechargeable battery pack. The headset is placed on the subject's head and outputs data to a data collector that forwards the data to the computer. Each accelerometer has an attached tip that makes contact with the subject's head through hair. The headset also includes a photoplethysmograph (PPG) that simultaneously captures the subject's heart-rate information. There is no energy delivered to the brain or subject by these highly sensitive sensors.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Compare Stroke subject recordings with non-stroke subject recordings	The primary endpoint in Part I of the study is to enroll and record BrainPulse data from 35 eligible subjects who present with classic stroke symptoms and either have a confirmed diagnosis of stroke or no stroke. The BrainPulse device will be used to analyze and compare the differences in signal characteristics between stroke, TIA and control subjects.	6 months
Compare differences in signal charactertistics between LVO stroke and all other subjects	BrainPulse signal of all subjects will be analyzed to compare the difference in signal characteristics between LVO stroke and all other subjects enrolled in the study.	12 months

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Compare Ischemic stroke subject recordings with hemorrhagic stroke or stroke mimic subject recordings	BrainPulse signal will be analyzed to compare the similarity and difference of the BrainPulse signal between hemorrhagic stroke, ischemic stroke subjects or stroke mimics.	12 months

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: Jan Medical, Inc.
• Investigators: Principal Investigator: Kyle Walsh, MD, University of Cincinnati

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (Actual): September 10, 2017
• Primary Completion (Actual): August 28, 2024
• Study Completion (Actual): August 28, 2024

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: July 28, 2017
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: July 28, 2017
• First Posted (Actual): August 1, 2017

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Actual): March 25, 2025
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: March 4, 2025
• Last Verified: March 1, 2025

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Additional Relevant MeSH Terms: Cerebrovascular Disorders; Brain Diseases; Central Nervous System Diseases; Nervous System Diseases; Vascular Diseases; Cardiovascular Diseases; Stroke
• Other Study ID Numbers: JMC-1701

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

• Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?: UNDECIDED

Drug and device information, study documents

• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product: No
• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product: No
• product manufactured in and exported from the U.S.: No