MR Guided Focused Ultrasound (FUS) for the Treatment of Trigeminal Neuralgia

February 12, 2024 updated by: Dheeraj Gandhi, University of Maryland, Baltimore

Phase 1 Clinical Trial for MR Guided Focused Ultrasound (FUS) Thalamotomy of Central Lateral Thalamic Nucleus for the Treatment of Medication-refractory Trigeminal Neuralgia

The purpose of this study is to assess the safety and effectiveness of MRI-guided focused ultrasound (MRgFUS) for treating Trigeminal Neuralgia. Trigeminal Neuralgia (pain) is a type of pain involving the face that can be disabling to those it affects.

Study Overview

Status

Recruiting

Detailed Description

The purpose of this study is to assess the safety and effectiveness of MRI-guided focused ultrasound (MRgFUS) for treating Trigeminal Neuralgia. Trigeminal Neuralgia (pain) is a type of pain involving the face that can be disabling to those it affects.

Usually, people with trigeminal pain receive medicines to control the pain. However, these medications may not give adequate pain relief. They may have unwanted side effects. In many patients with Trigeminal Neuralgia, a blood vessel compressing the nerve could be responsible for this condition. In such patients, surgery (also called micro-vascular decompression) is considered to be the best option if the medications do not control the pain. However, not all patients are good candidates for surgical correction and some patients may have recurrence of pain following surgical correction.

When surgery is not possible or recommended, other procedures are also available to patients. Such procedures usually result in selective damage to the nerve pain fibers in the Trigeminal nerve. Examples of these treatments include injection of materials such as Glycerol into the nerve, compression of the nerve with a balloon or selective radiation treatment of the nerve (stereotactic Radiosurgery). These treatments may not always improve the patient's pain or may only relieve the pain for a short duration of time.

These treatments may also result in damage to the nerve fibers that carry sensation from the face.

Our study will assess a new device for treating patients who have disabling pain that has not responded to medications or medications along with surgery. The device we will assess is called the ExAblate Transcranial focused ultrasound system. In this study, we will use this device to send ultrasound waves through the skull to precisely target and treat a tiny area of the brain called central lateral nucleus.

Study Type

Interventional

Enrollment (Estimated)

10

Phase

  • 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

  • Name: Dheeraj Gandhi, MD
  • Phone Number: (248)-497-8856
  • Email: dgandhi@umm.edu

Study Contact Backup

Study Locations

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

Ages Eligible for Study

21 years to 75 years (Adult, Older Adult)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  1. Clinical Diagnosis of Classical or Idiopathic TN refractory to medical therapy
  2. Age greater than 21 and less than 75 years
  3. Subjects who are able and willing to give consent and able to attend all study visits
  4. Documented chronic, severe pain for more than 6 months duration
  5. Failure to respond to the usual therapeutic regimen considered to be standard of care for Trigeminal Neuralgia. The patient should have failed a trial of at least two classes of therapeutic agents, including an anticonvulsant agent
  6. Patient with Trigeminal Neuralagia who has either failed a prior surgical approach considered to be standard of care for TN (Micro-vascular decompression, radiofrequency, stereotactic, Radiosurgery or glycerol) or is not considered to be an acceptable candidate for one of those alternative options (due to anesthesia risk, medical comorbidities or Patient refusal despite counseling).
  7. Central lateral thalamotomy is feasible based on evaluation of imaging studies
  8. Patient able to communicate sensations during the Exablate TcMRgFUS treatment
  9. Two members of the medical team have agreed upon inclusion and exclusion criteria.

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Patient with contra-indications to MRI such as severe claustrophobia and metallic implants incompatible with MRI.

    1. Severe psychiatric disorder such as uncontrolled depression, bipolar disorder, prior attempt at suicide or suicide ideation in preceding 12 months
    2. Life expectancy less than 12 months
    3. Anticoagulant or antiplatelet medications as well as underlying coagulopathy
    4. Prior or currently implanted thalamic DBS
    5. Pregnant ladies or women of childbearing age who are sexually active and not using contraception
    6. Inability to provide informed consent, for example due to underlying cognitive impairment or aphasia
    7. Presence of intracranial mass or an acute intracranial abnormality
    8. Subjects with unstable cardiac status such as Unstable angina pectoris, documented myocardial infarction within 6 months of protocol entry and ejection fraction less than 40
    9. Subjects exhibiting any behavior(s) consistent with ethanol or substance abuse as defined by the criteria outlined in the DSM-IV.
    10. Severe hypertension (diastolic BP > 100 on medication or persistently elevated SBP>140 mmHg despite adequate antihypertensive medications)
    11. History of immunocompromise including those who are HIV positive.
    12. History of intracranial hemorrhage, traumatic brain injury or thalamic stroke.
    13. Cerebrovascular disease (multiple CVA or CVA within 6 months)
    14. Subjects with life-threatening systemic disease that include and not limited to the following will be excluded from the study participation: HIV, Liver Failure, blood dyscrasias, etc.
    15. Subjects with a history of seizures within the past year
    16. Individuals who are not able or willing to tolerate the required prolonged stationary supine position during treatment (can be up to 4 hours of total table time.)
    17. Are participating or have participated in another clinical trial in the last 30 days
    18. Skull Density Ratio (SDR) less than 0.4 ± 0.05
    19. History of multiple sclerosis.

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: Device Feasibility
  • Allocation: N/A
  • Interventional Model: Single Group Assignment
  • Masking: None (Open Label)

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm
Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: ExAblate Transcranial treatment
The ExAblate Transcranial system will be used to destroy a small cluster of cells that may be causing the study participant's pain . The ExAblate uses ultrasound to heat a small spot in the brain called central lateral thalamic nucleus. Ultrasound passes through the skin and skull and into the brain to focus on this particular spot.
Patients' head will be placed in ExAblate device to hold it still for the treatment. The ExAblate Transcranial helmet will be placed on their head. The investigators will measure the study participant's heart, blood pressure, temperature, and breathing rate before the treatment begins. MRI scans will be taken to make sure the ultrasound waves will be aimed exactly within the target. A series of MR images will be taken to identify the target area, and plan the study treatment. The study investigators will decide on the area of participant's brain that will be treated. The ExAblate Transcranial system will compute a plan to cover the treatment area. This area is gradually heated while monitoring the patient's responses and neurologic examination.
Other Names:
  • The ExAblate® MR guided focused ultrasound system

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Incidence of Treatment related adverse events
Time Frame: All events will be reported up to 6 months from treatment
Procedure related or device related adverse events will be reported, from the treatment day through the 6-month follow-up period.
All events will be reported up to 6 months from treatment

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Change in pain intensity
Time Frame: 6 months
Efficacy of ExAblate TcMRgFUS for Thalamotomy will be evaluated using Barrow Neurological Institute (BNI) pain intensity score.
6 months
Change in pain intensity
Time Frame: 6 months
Efficacy of ExAblate TcMRgFUS for Thalamotomy will be evaluated using Brief Pain Inventory-Facial.
6 months
Change in pain intensity
Time Frame: 6 months
Efficacy of ExAblate TcMRgFUS for Thalamotomy will be evaluated using Pain Numeric rating scale (NRS).
6 months
Change in patient's perception of the effect of the procedure
Time Frame: 6 months
Patient Global impression of change (PGIC): The effect of the procedure on patient perceived impact of pain related symptoms, emotions and quality of life will be measured using PGIC scale.
6 months

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Investigators

  • Principal Investigator: Dheeraj Gandhi, MD, University of Maryland, Baltimore

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)

February 20, 2021

Primary Completion (Estimated)

June 15, 2025

Study Completion (Estimated)

June 15, 2025

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

September 28, 2020

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

October 4, 2020

First Posted (Actual)

October 8, 2020

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

February 13, 2024

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

February 12, 2024

Last Verified

February 1, 2024

More Information

Terms related to this study

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

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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