Zapping the brain to restore speech after stroke?
NCT ID NCT06092814
First seen Aug 24, 2026 · Last updated Aug 25, 2026 · Updated 1 time
Summary
This study tests whether transcranial alternating current stimulation (tACS) can enhance language abilities in people with aphasia, a language disorder that often follows a stroke. Participants with post-stroke aphasia will receive both real and sham tACS while performing language tasks, and their responses will be compared to healthy older adults. The goal is to see if this non-invasive brain stimulation technique can improve word-finding and naming, and whether the brains of people with aphasia respond differently to the stimulation.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- Transcranial alternating current stimulation (tACS), a device that delivers low-intensity electrical current to the brain via scalp electrodes
- What this could lead to
- If effective, tACS could offer a non-invasive way to enhance language recovery in people with aphasia after stroke, potentially improving their ability to name objects and communicate.
- What could go wrong
- This is an early-stage study, and the benefits of tACS are not yet proven. The effect may be small or not translate to real-world language gains, and individual responses may vary.
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 120 people
The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.
- Started
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Jul 2024
- Expected to finish
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Aug 2028
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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18 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 Persons with Aphasia: 1. Presence of aphasia 2. Suffered a single, left hemisphere stroke 3. Stroke ≥6 months old (chronic) at the time of enrollment Inclusion Criteria for Healthy Controls: 1. Right-handedness 2. Must be able to understand the nature of the study, and give informed consent Exclusion criteria for Persons with Aphasia: 1. Inability to understand the nature of the study 2. Marked naming impairment 3. Impaired non-verbal, conceptual processing 4. History of significant medical or neurological disorder (other than stroke) 5. History of significant or poorly controlled psychiatric disorders 6. Current abuse of alcohol or drugs, prescription or otherwise 7. Nursing a child, pregnancy, or intent to become pregnant during the study 8. Clinically significant hearing loss 9. Contraindications to tACS 10. Contraindications to MRI Exclusion Criteria for Healthy Controls 1. Diagnosis of a neurodegenerative disease or clinically significant cognitive complaint 2. Any unrelated neurologic or physical condition that impairs communication ability 3. History of unrelated neurological conditions including but not limited to traumatic brain injury, stroke, or small vessel disease that has resulted in a neurologic deficit 4. Any additional neurological condition that would likely reduce the safety of study participation, including central nervous system (CNS) vasculitis, intracranial tumor, intracranial aneurysm, multiple sclerosis or arteriovenous malformations 5. A medically unstable cardiopulmonary or metabolic disorder 6. Terminal illness associated with survival \<12 months 7. Major active psychiatric illness that may interfere with required study procedures or treatments as determined by the enrolling physician 8. Current abuse of alcohol or drugs, prescription or otherwise 9. Contraindications to tACS 10. Contraindications to MRI
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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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University of Pennsylvania
RECRUITINGPhiladelphia, Pennsylvania, 19104, United States
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Other studies related to the condition(s) this trial covers.
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- Correlation of visual and motor deficits in stroke patients
- Pilot study on the effects induced by an electromyographic-controlled functional electrical stimulator (FitFES) for upper limb rehabilitation in post-stroke patients
- Brazilian version of a behavior change intervention to support healthy lifestyle adoption after stroke - iVIDAVC: protocol for a pilot randomized study
- Determination of efficacy of sustained motor contraction generated using StimWave peripheral nerve stimulator
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