Mindfulness and nerve stimulation tested for kidney disease
NCT ID NCT04099992
First seen Jun 27, 2026 · Last updated Jun 27, 2026
Summary
This study tests whether mindfulness meditation and a mild nerve stimulation device can improve nerve function and blood pressure in people with chronic kidney disease. About 150 participants with moderate kidney disease will take part. The goal is to see if these approaches can help calm overactive nerves that often worsen kidney health.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR) and transcutaneous vagus nerve stimulation (tVNS)
- What this could lead to
- If it works, this could point toward a non-drug way to manage nerve and blood pressure problems in chronic kidney disease.
- What could go wrong
- This is an early-stage study with 150 participants, so results may not apply to everyone. The interventions are behavioral and may not produce strong or lasting effects.
This is an AI summary of the original study and may miss details. Read our disclaimer.
Study facts
What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.
- Phase
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Not a phased trial
Phase numbers describe drug development. The registry uses this when they do not apply, as it does for trials of devices, procedures or behaviour changes, and for observational studies.
- Participants
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About 150 people
The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.
- Started
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Sep 2019
- Expected to finish
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Sep 2026
An estimate. End dates often move.
- Lead sponsor
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Other sponsor
The registry's catch-all category, for sponsors it does not file as a company, a government agency, or a research network.
Who can take part
This study's own entry requirements. Only the study team can say for certain whether you qualify.
- Ages
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40 to 80 years
- Sex
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Anyone
- Healthy volunteers
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Not accepted
This study is not open to healthy volunteers. The entry requirements below say who it is open to.
Show the full entry requirements Hide the full entry requirements
Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.
Inclusion Criteria: * stages III and IV CKD as defined by the Chronic Kidney Disease Epidemiology Collaboration (CKD-EPI) creatinine equation * stable renal function (no greater than a decline of eGFR of 1 cc/min/1.73 m2 per month over the prior 3 months) Exclusion Criteria: * severe CKD (eGFR\<15 cc/min) * diabetic neuropathy * autonomic dysfunction * any serious disease that might influence survival * anemia with hemoglobin \<10 g/dL * treatment with central α-agonists or monoamine oxidase (MAO) inhibitors * myocardial infarction or cerebrovascular accident within the past 6 months * uncontrolled hypertension (BP≥170/100 mm Hg) * low BP (BP\<100/50 mm Hg) * bradycardia (HR\<55 beats/min) * ongoing drug or alcohol abuse (defined as \>2 drinks/day in men, and \>1 drink/day in women) * surgery within the past 3 months * adjustment of antihypertensive medications within the past month * pregnancy or plans to become pregnant * psychosis * suicidal ideation * implanted electronic or metallic device such as a pacemaker * implanted hearing aid, bone plate, carotid stent, bone screw at or near the neck * carotid atherosclerosis * concurrent use of another stimulating device such as a transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS) unit
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Conditions
The condition(s) this trial relates to.
As listed by the trial registrant
The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.
How to take part
Only the study team decides who joins. These are the ways to reach them.
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The places running it
1 site. The list below names each one and where it is.
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The official record
ClinicalTrials.gov lists the study team's own contact details, including names and phone numbers. We don't republish those.
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A doctor treating you
A doctor who knows your case can contact a study site on your behalf, and can tell you whether this study is worth pursuing at all.
Contacts and locations
Locations
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Atlanta VA Medical Center
RECRUITINGAtlanta, Georgia, 30322, United States
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