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Determine the Effect of Targeted High-definition Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation (tDCS) on Reducing Post-stroke Upper Limb Motor Impairments

NCT05479006 · Status: RECRUITING · Phase: NA · Type: INTERVENTIONAL · Enrollment: 30

Last updated 2025-12-19

No results posted yet for this study

Summary

Significant motor impairments occur in 80% of individuals after moderate to severe stroke and impact the body side to the lesioned hemisphere. Typical motor impairments involve loss of dexterity with highly prevalent upper limb flexion synergy. Advances in treating flexion synergy impairments have been hampered by a lack of precision rehabilitation. Previous studies suggest and support the role of cortico-reticulospinal tract (CRST) hyperexcitability in post-stroke flexion synergy. CRST hyperexcitability is often caused by damage to the corticospinal tract (CST). We hypothesize that: 1) inhibiting the contralesional dorsal premotor cortex (cPMd) will directly reduce the CRST hyperexcitability and thus, reduce the expression of the flexion synergy; 2) facilitating the ipsilesional primary motor cortex (iM1) will improve the excitability of the damaged CST, therefore reducing the CRST hyperexcitability and the flexion synergy. we propose to use a novel targeted high-definition tDCS (THD-tDCS) to specifically modulate the targeted cortical regions for testing his hypothesis, via the following aims: Aim 1. Evaluate the effect of cathodal THD-tDCS over the cPMd on reducing the CRST hyperexcitability and the expression of flexion synergy. Aim 2. Evaluate the effect of anodal THD-tDCS over the iM1 on improving the excitability of the CST, and determine whether this, thus, also reduces the CRST hyperexcitability and the flexion synergy. Aim 3. Evaluate the confluence effect of bilateral THD-tDCS, i.e., simultaneous cathodal stimulation over the cPMd and anodal over the iM1.

Conditions

Interventions

DEVICE

Transcranial direct current stimulation (high- definition)

20 minutes, 2 mA stimulation.

Sponsors & Collaborators

Study Design

Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Purpose
BASIC_SCIENCE
Masking
DOUBLE
Model
CROSSOVER

Eligibility

Min Age
18 Years
Max Age
90 Years
Sex
ALL
Healthy Volunteers
No

Timeline & Regulatory

Start
2022-09-30
Primary Completion
2026-06-30
Completion
2026-06-30

Countries

  • United States

Study Locations

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Entities

Diseases
Companies

Read the full study record

This page highlights key information. For complete eligibility criteria, study locations, investigator contacts, and the full protocol, visit the original record on ClinicalTrials.gov.

View NCT05479006 on ClinicalTrials.gov