Local Vibration for Drooling in Children With Cerebral Palsy

June 2, 2026 updated by: Merve Tunçdemir, Bitlis Eren University

Effects of Local Vibration on Orofacial Muscle Tone and Drooling in Children With Cerebral Palsy

This randomized-controlled trial evaluates local vibration therapy for drooling and orofacial muscle biomechanics in children with cerebral palsy. Participants receive either local vibration plus conventional physiotherapy or sham vibration plus conventional physiotherapy.

Study Overview

Status

Not yet recruiting

Conditions

Intervention / Treatment

Detailed Description

This randomized-controlled trial aims to evaluate the effects of local vibration therapy on drooling severity and perioral and submandibular muscle biomechanics in children with cerebral palsy. Participants will be allocated to either an experimental group receiving local vibration in addition to conventional physiotherapy or a control group receiving sham vibration with conventional physiotherapy. Local vibration will be applied to the perioral and submandibular regions for 5 minutes each over three consecutive days. Assessments will be conducted at baseline, immediately after the third intervention session, and at 1-week follow-up.

Study Type

Interventional

Enrollment (Estimated)

20

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

Study Contact Backup

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

  • Child
  • Adult

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Diagnosis of cerebral palsy
  • Age between 2 and 18 years
  • Presence of anterior drooling
  • Drooling severity and frequency score ≥ 3 on a standardized drooling scale

Exclusion Criteria:

  • History of surgical intervention for drooling management
  • History of botulinum toxin injection for drooling management
  • Use of medications affecting salivary control
  • Presence of progressive neurological disease
  • Presence of salivary gland pathology or active upper respiratory tract infection
  • History or symptoms of aspiration pneumonia within the last 6 months
  • Indication for surgical treatment of drooling (e.g., more than four clothing changes per day and presence of chin or neck dermatitis)
  • Uncontrolled seizures
  • Presence of oral or perioral lesions
  • Presence of gastrostomy tube
  • Treatment adherence below 85%

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: Double

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm
Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: Local Vibration Group
In this group, participants will receive conventional physiotherapy combined with local vibration therapy. Local vibration will be applied to the perioral and submandibular regions for 5 minutes each (total 10 minutes per session) once daily for three consecutive days using a vibration device.
Other: Local Vibration Therapy
Local vibration therapy will be applied to the perioral and submandibular regions using a vibration device for 5 minutes each (total 10 minutes per session), once daily for three consecutive days.
Sham Comparator: Sham Vibration Group
In this group, participants will receive conventional physiotherapy combined with sham vibration. The vibration device will be activated but not applied to the skin surface. The procedure will mimic the experimental protocol in duration and setting and will be performed once daily for three consecutive days.
Other: Sham Vibration
Sham vibration will be administered using the same device without contact with the skin. The intervention will be delivered for 10 minutes per session, once daily for three consecutive days.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Muscle Tone
Time Frame: Baseline, immediately after the third intervention session, and 1-week follow-up
Muscle tone of the perioral and submandibular muscles (orbicularis oris and anterior digastric muscles) will be evaluated using a portable hand-held myotonometer (MyotonPRO). The MyotonPRO applies a short mechanical impulse to the skin overlying the muscle or fascia. The tissue response generates a signal that is recorded, and the internal software produces an acceleration graph.
Baseline, immediately after the third intervention session, and 1-week follow-up
Muscle Stiffness
Time Frame: Baseline, immediately after the third intervention session, and 1-week follow-up
Muscle stiffness of the perioral and submandibular muscles (orbicularis oris and anterior digastric muscles) will be evaluated using a portable hand-held myotonometer (MyotonPRO). The MyotonPRO applies a short mechanical impulse to the skin overlying the muscle or fascia. The tissue response generates a signal that is recorded, and the internal software produces an acceleration graph.
Baseline, immediately after the third intervention session, and 1-week follow-up
Muscle Elasticity (logarithmic decrement)
Time Frame: Baseline, immediately after the third intervention session, and 1-week follow-up
Muscle elasticity of the perioral and submandibular muscles (orbicularis oris and anterior digastric muscles) will be evaluated using a portable hand-held myotonometer (MyotonPRO). The MyotonPRO applies a short mechanical impulse to the skin overlying the muscle or fascia. The tissue response generates a signal that is recorded, and the internal software produces an acceleration graph.
Baseline, immediately after the third intervention session, and 1-week follow-up

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Change in drooling severity and frequency
Time Frame: Baseline, immediately after the third intervention session, and 1-week follow-up
Drooling severity and frequency will be assessed using a standardized drooling scale, with severity scored from 1 (no drooling) to 5 (severe drooling) and frequency scored from 1 (no drooling) to 4 (constant drooling)
Baseline, immediately after the third intervention session, and 1-week follow-up
Global Rating of Change Scale
Time Frame: Immediately after the third intervention session and 1-week follow-up
Parent-reported global rating of change using the Global Rating of Change Scale. Scores range from -7 (very much worse) to +7 (very much improved), with higher scores indicating greater perceived improvement.
Immediately after the third intervention session and 1-week follow-up
Caregiver-reported drooling burden
Time Frame: Baseline, immediately after the third intervention session, and 1-week follow-up
Caregivers will report the frequency of clothing changes and use of tissues related to drooling.
Baseline, immediately after the third intervention session, and 1-week follow-up

Collaborators and Investigators

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

Sponsor

Bitlis Eren University

Investigators

  • Principal Investigator: Merve Tunçdemir, Asst. Prof., Bitlis Eren University
  • Principal Investigator: Ömer Dursun, Assoc. Prof., Bitlis Eren University

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)

July 27, 2026

Primary Completion (Estimated)

August 27, 2026

Study Completion (Estimated)

August 27, 2026

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

April 17, 2026

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

June 2, 2026

First Posted (Actual)

June 4, 2026

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

June 4, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

June 2, 2026

Last Verified

June 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

  • Beuftr_4

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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