Video game reads muscle signals to study movement in cerebral palsy and hemiparesis
NCT ID NCT07838688
First seen Sep 24, 2026 · Last updated Sep 25, 2026 · Updated 1 time
Summary
Researchers at Rennes University Hospital are studying how muscles work during a rehabilitation video game controlled by surface electromyography, which detects muscle activity through sensors on the skin. The study includes children with cerebral palsy, adults with hemiparesis after a stroke, and healthy volunteers. Participants play a single 30-minute game session in different modes, such as one-player or two-player, and researchers measure muscle activation and the number of contractions. The study also asks how enjoyable, motivating, and usable the game feels to adults with hemiparesis.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- a rehabilitation video game controlled by surface electromyography, which reads muscle signals through sensors on the skin
- What this could lead to
- If the game produces useful muscle activity and players enjoy it, it could inform future rehabilitation tools for people with cerebral palsy or hemiparesis.
- What could go wrong
- This is a small, single-session pilot study with 50 participants. It measures muscle signals during one game session, so it cannot show whether the game improves strength, movement, or daily function over time.
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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 50 people
The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.
- Expected to start
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Jan 2027
An estimate. Start dates often move.
- Expected to finish
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Jan 2029
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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7 to 85 years
- Sex
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Anyone
- Healthy volunteers
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Accepted
You do not need to have the condition being studied to take part.
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 for children with cerebral palsy: * Participants with cerebral palsy who are able to walk, GMFCS stages I through III, hemiplegic, diplegic, or quadriplegic * Aged 7 to 17 years * With palpable contractions of the target muscles (triceps surae and tibialis anterior) (≥ 1 on the Medical Research Council \[MRC\] scale) * Having received verbal and written information about the protocol, having agreed to participate in this study, and having signed a consent form if the participant is 15 years of age or older * Signed consent for participation from the participant's legal guardians * Enrolled, either personally or through their parents, in a social security program Inclusion Criteria for adults with hemiparesis * Stroke in the subacute or chronic phase * Aged 18 to 85 years * With palpable contractions of the target muscles (triceps surae and tibialis anterior) (≥ 1 on the Medical Research Council \[MRC\] scale) * Having received verbal and written information about the protocol and having signed a consent form to participate in this study * Enrolled in a social security program Inclusion Criteria for Healthy subjects matched for age to the group of participants with hemiparesis * Aged 18 to 85 * No neurological disorders * Who received verbal and written information about the protocol and signed a consent form to participate in this study. Exclusion Criteria: * Surgery on the lower extremities within the past 6 months * A botulinum toxin injection into the triceps surae and/or the tibialis anterior within the past 3 months * Pain during dorsiflexion or plantarflexion of the ankle joint * Cognitive impairments limiting participation * A person referred to in Articles L1121-5, L1121-6, L2121-8, L1121-9 of the Public Health Code * Participating in another therapeutic or drug intervention study that could affect this study
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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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CHU de RENNES
Rennes, France
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