Family love as medicine: emotional stimulation shows promise for coma recovery

NCT ID NCT07537023

Completed Symptom relief Sponsor: Cairo University Source: ClinicalTrials.gov ↗

First seen Jun 25, 2026 · Last updated Jun 27, 2026 · Updated 1 time

Summary

This study tested whether guided emotional and sensory stimulation from family members could help coma patients with traumatic brain injury recover. 120 patients were split into two groups: one received standard care, the other added structured family interaction like talking, gentle touch, and familiar voices. After the intervention, the family-stimulation group showed significantly better consciousness and coma recovery scores. The results suggest that involving families in care could be a simple, low-cost way to support recovery.

What this could mean

Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only — not medical advice or a prediction.

Active substance: Family-Centered Affective Stimulation (FCAS)
What this could lead to: If this approach works, it could offer a simple, family-led way to help coma patients regain consciousness and improve recovery.
What could go wrong: This was a small, single-center study with no blinding, so results may not apply broadly. The improvement seen might not hold up in larger, more rigorous trials.

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Conditions

The condition(s) this trial relates to.

Brain Injuries, Traumatic Coma, Post-Head Injury traumatic brain injury

As listed by the trial registrant

The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.

COMA, TRAUMATIC PATIENTS WITH TRAUMATIC BRAIN INJURY

Contacts and locations

Locations

Ain Shams University Hospitals

Cairo, Abbasia, 11591, Egypt

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