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Abdominal Electrical Stimulation for Bowel Dysfunction in SCI

NCT06948175 · Status: ENROLLING_BY_INVITATION · Phase: NA · Type: INTERVENTIONAL · Enrollment: 12

Last updated 2025-09-22

No results posted yet for this study

Summary

Many people with spinal cord injury (SCI) have bowel problems resulting in constipation and need a long time to empty the bowel. Some people spend an hour or more to empty their bowel. The investigators want test if using a small device to deliver electrical pulses to the belly (abdomen), would improve bowel function. The investigators hope that electrical stimulation will shorten the time needed to evacuate the bowel (defecation), improve stool consistency, and speed up food passing through the bowel. A pilot study found that electrical stimulation of the belly can speed up defecation if stimulation is making the abdominal muscles contract and squeeze the belly, which is what the investigators expected. However, some results suggested that people may benefit from low stimulation levels without making the muscles contract.

Therefore, the investigators will do small study at the University of Alberta on 12 people who lived with SCI for more than 1 year, to find out the best way to apply the electrical stimulation, and to better understand how it works. The participants will use an electrical stimulator at home, to stimulate the skin with 4 sticky pads attached over the abdomen, without causing the muscles to contract. During a 2-month period, they will use the stimulator for 30 minutes before every bowel routine. The investigators will compare how long it takes to empty the bowel, stool consistency, and how long it takes for food to pass through the bowel, with and without using the electrical stimulator.

Conditions

  • Chronic Spinal Cord Injury

Interventions

DEVICE

Abdominal transcutaneous electrical stimulation (TES)

Low-intensity sensory abdominal transcutaneous electrical stimulation (TES)

Sponsors & Collaborators

  • Praxis Spinal Cord Institute

    collaborator OTHER

  • Glenrose Foundation

    collaborator OTHER

  • University of Alberta

    lead OTHER

Principal Investigators

  • Chester Ho, MD · University of Alberta, Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry

Study Design

Allocation
NA
Purpose
TREATMENT
Masking
NONE
Model
SINGLE_GROUP

Eligibility

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

Timeline & Regulatory

Start
2025-07-14
Primary Completion
2026-03-31
Completion
2026-03-31

Countries

  • Canada

Study Locations

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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 NCT06948175 on ClinicalTrials.gov