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Vagus Nerve Stimulation in Patients in Comatose State

17 juillet 2026 mis à jour par: Sima Mofakham

Dual-Site Transcutaneous Auricular Nerve Stimulation (taVNS + taTNS) for Disorders of Consciousness After Traumatic Brain Injury: A Pilot Efficacy Study

Some patients with severe traumatic brain injury cannot respond at the bedside, yet about 1 in 4 may be aware but unable to show it - a hidden state called cognitive motor dissociation. This study tests a gentle, non-invasive treatment delivered through clips on the left ear that stimulates two nerves at once: the vagus nerve at the inner ear (taVNS) and the trigeminal nerve at the outer ear (taTNS). Each nerve has separately been shown to help people with disorders of consciousness recover, but they have not been combined before. All enrolled patients receive the stimulation for one hour a day, with continuous heart and oxygen monitoring and a pain-protection check used to keep the dose safe. The study measures recovery two ways: the Coma Recovery Scale-Revised (CRS-R), scored by clinicians, and SeeMe, an automated camera system that detects tiny command-driven movements the eye cannot see.

Aperçu de l'étude

Description détaillée

This prospective, single-center, open-label, single-arm pilot study enrolls a subcohort of comatose TBI patients from the parent SeeMe study (NCT07560631) whose legally authorized representative consents to a stimulation addendum. Dual-site transcutaneous auricular nerve stimulation is delivered to the left ear: the vagal site (cymba conchae) targets the auricular branch of the vagus nerve, and the trigeminal site (outer ear) targets the auriculotemporal branch - each with distinct, optimized parameters. Mechanistically, vagal afferents project to the nucleus tractus solitarius and the ascending reticular activating system to promote arousal, while trigeminal afferents project via the spinal trigeminal nucleus to thalamus and cortex to enhance thalamocortical connectivity; the dual-site paradigm aims to drive the cortico-striatal-thalamic-cortical loop from two convergent directions. Baseline assessment captures CRS-R, GCS, vital signs, NCS-R, heart-rate variability, and EEG. Daily one-hour sessions include pre/post vitals, NCS-R-guided titration, continuous telemetry, ear-site inspection, and daily CRS-R. In parallel, the SeeMe computer-vision platform quantifies stimulus-evoked facial and hand movements. The course runs 7 consecutive days, extendable to 28 days. Findings will inform a future sham-controlled randomized trial and closed-loop integration with SeeMe.

Type d'étude

Interventionnel

Inscription (Estimé)

10

Phase

  • N'est pas applicable

Contacts et emplacements

Cette section fournit les coordonnées de ceux qui mènent l'étude et des informations sur le lieu où cette étude est menée.

Coordonnées de l'étude

Lieux d'étude

Critères de participation

Les chercheurs recherchent des personnes qui correspondent à une certaine description, appelée critères d'éligibilité. Certains exemples de ces critères sont l'état de santé général d'une personne ou des traitements antérieurs.

Critère d'éligibilité

Âges éligibles pour étudier

  • Adulte
  • Adulte plus âgé

Accepte les volontaires sains

Non

La description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Age ≥ 18 years
  • Coma, vegetative state/unresponsive wakefulness syndrome (VS/UWS), or minimally conscious state (MCS) as determined by baseline CRS-R
  • Acute traumatic brain injury with documented intracranial pathology on neuroimaging
  • Admission to the Neurology or Neurosurgical ICU
  • Legally authorized representative (LAR) available and willing to consent, including the Stimulation Addendum Consent Form

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Implanted cardiac pacemaker, vagus nerve stimulator, or other active implanted device
  • Known cardiac arrhythmia (e.g., 2nd-/3rd-degree AV block, atrial fibrillation with uncontrolled rate)
  • Active seizures not controlled by current antiepileptic regimen
  • Skin breakdown, infection, or anatomical abnormality of the left ear precluding electrode placement
  • Pregnancy
  • Hemodynamic instability requiring vasopressor escalation at the time of enrollment

Plan d'étude

Cette section fournit des détails sur le plan d'étude, y compris la façon dont l'étude est conçue et ce que l'étude mesure.

Comment l'étude est-elle conçue ?

Détails de conception

  • Objectif principal: Traitement
  • Répartition: N / A
  • Modèle interventionnel: Affectation à un seul groupe
  • Masquage: Aucun (étiquette ouverte)

Armes et Interventions

Groupe de participants / Bras
Intervention / Traitement
Expérimental: Dual-site auricular stimulation (taVNS + taTNS)
Experimental: Dual-site auricular stimulation (taVNS + taTNS). All enrolled participants receive active vagal and trigeminal auricular stimulation.
DEVICE: Dual-Site Transcutaneous Auricular Nerve Stimulation (taVNS + taTNS). Delivered via ear-clip electrodes on the LEFT ear using the Sparrow Ascent / Sparrow Link tAN System (Spark Biomedical; FDA-cleared K230796), operated as an NSR investigational device. Vagal site (inner ear / cymba conchae): 15 Hz, 250 µs pulse width, 3 mA fixed, duty cycle 5 min on / 10 s off. Trigeminal site (outer ear): 100 Hz, 250 µs pulse width, 3 mA fixed, duty cycle 5 min on / 10 s off. Session: 1 hour/day. Course: 7 consecutive days, extendable to 28 days. Intensity titrated with the Nociception Coma Scale-Revised (NCS-R): step down 0.5 mA if NCS-R > 4/9, SpO2 ≤ 95%, or HR rises ≥ 20 bpm; continuous cardiac/hemodynamic monitoring with prespecified stopping rules.

Que mesure l'étude ?

Principaux critères de jugement

Mesure des résultats
Description de la mesure
Délai
Change in Coma Recovery Scale-Revised (CRS-R) Total Score
Délai: Baseline to Day 7, or baseline to Day 28 for participants with extended treatment
Change in level of consciousness will be assessed using the Coma Recovery Scale-Revised total score. The outcome will be reported as the within-participant change in total score from baseline to the end of treatment, as scored by a trained assessor. Scores range from 0 to 23, with higher scores indicating better neurobehavioral function and greater recovery of consciousness.
Baseline to Day 7, or baseline to Day 28 for participants with extended treatment
Change in SeeMe-Detected Stimulus-Evoked Voluntary Motor Responses
Délai: Baseline to Day 7, or baseline to Day 28 for participants with extended treatment
Change in command-evoked voluntary motor responses will be assessed using the SeeMe automated camera-based detection system. The outcome will be reported as the within-participant change in the percentage of command trials with SeeMe-positive responses from baseline to the end of treatment. Scores range from 0% to 100%, with higher percentages indicating more frequent command-evoked voluntary motor responses. A SeeMe-positive response is defined as a Kolmogorov-Smirnov statistic greater than 0.1 and pixel displacement greater than 400, detected reliably in at least 3 of 10 command trials. SeeMe scoring will be automated and performed blinded to stimulation timing.
Baseline to Day 7, or baseline to Day 28 for participants with extended treatment

Mesures de résultats secondaires

Mesure des résultats
Description de la mesure
Délai
Number of Participants With Device- or Stimulation-Related Adverse Events
Délai: Baseline to Day 7, or baseline to Day 28 for participants with extended treatment
Adverse events attributed to auricular stimulation will be recorded and graded using CTCAE v5.0, including ear-site skin reactions, bradycardia or other arrhythmia, oxygen desaturation, and hemodynamic instability. Events requiring NCS-R-guided dose reduction or meeting prespecified stopping criteria will be reported.
Baseline to Day 7, or baseline to Day 28 for participants with extended treatment

Collaborateurs et enquêteurs

C'est ici que vous trouverez les personnes et les organisations impliquées dans cette étude.

Dates d'enregistrement des études

Ces dates suivent la progression des dossiers d'étude et des soumissions de résultats sommaires à ClinicalTrials.gov. Les dossiers d'étude et les résultats rapportés sont examinés par la Bibliothèque nationale de médecine (NLM) pour s'assurer qu'ils répondent à des normes de contrôle de qualité spécifiques avant d'être publiés sur le site Web public.

Dates principales de l'étude

Début de l'étude (Réel)

26 juin 2026

Achèvement primaire (Estimé)

1 décembre 2029

Achèvement de l'étude (Estimé)

1 décembre 2029

Dates d'inscription aux études

Première soumission

26 juin 2026

Première soumission répondant aux critères de contrôle qualité

17 juillet 2026

Première publication (Réel)

22 juillet 2026

Mises à jour des dossiers d'étude

Dernière mise à jour publiée (Réel)

22 juillet 2026

Dernière mise à jour soumise répondant aux critères de contrôle qualité

17 juillet 2026

Dernière vérification

1 juin 2026

Plus d'information

Termes liés à cette étude

Plan pour les données individuelles des participants (IPD)

Prévoyez-vous de partager les données individuelles des participants (DPI) ?

OUI

Description du régime IPD

De-identified individual participant data underlying published results will be shared, including CRS-R scores, SeeMe-derived movement metrics, stimulation parameters, and safety data. Data will be available following publication of the primary results. Requests will be reviewed by the study team and require a data use agreement and confirmation of appropriate IRB or ethics approval. Raw facial video will not be shared due to the inherent re-identifiability of facial imagery; derived quantitative movement features will be shared instead.

Délai de partage IPD

Beginning 12 months after publication of the primary results and ending 5 years following publication.

Critères d'accès au partage IPD

Access will be granted to qualified investigators whose proposed use has been approved by the study team. Requestors must submit a methodologically sound research proposal and a signed data use agreement, and must provide documentation of IRB or equivalent ethics approval for the proposed analysis. Approved requestors will receive de-identified individual participant data, including CRS-R scores, SeeMe-derived quantitative movement metrics, stimulation parameters, and safety data, together with the study protocol, statistical analysis plan, and blank informed consent form. Raw facial video will not be released due to the inherent re-identifiability of facial imagery. Requests should be directed to the principal investigator at sima.mofakham@stonybrookmedicine.edu.

Type d'informations de prise en charge du partage d'IPD

  • PROTOCOLE D'ÉTUDE
  • SÈVE
  • ANALYTIC_CODE

Informations sur les médicaments et les dispositifs, documents d'étude

Étudie un produit pharmaceutique réglementé par la FDA américaine

Non

Étudie un produit d'appareil réglementé par la FDA américaine

Oui

produit fabriqué et exporté des États-Unis.

Non

Ces informations ont été extraites directement du site Web clinicaltrials.gov sans aucune modification. Si vous avez des demandes de modification, de suppression ou de mise à jour des détails de votre étude, veuillez contacter register@clinicaltrials.gov. Dès qu'un changement est mis en œuvre sur clinicaltrials.gov, il sera également mis à jour automatiquement sur notre site Web .

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