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Brain zaps may unlock lost words after stroke

NCT ID NCT04375722

Knowledge-focused Sponsor: Medical College of Wisconsin Source: ClinicalTrials.gov ↗

What the study statuses mean

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Recruitment status, easiest to join first

Recruiting now This study
This trial is taking on new participants right now.
Not yet recruiting
Registered, but not yet taking participants.
By invitation only
Not open to general applications. Only people the study team invites can take part.
Paused
Paused for now. It may or may not start again.
Ongoing
Running, but no longer taking on new participants.
Completed
The trial has finished. Results may not be published yet.
Stopped early
Stopped early, before it reached the end. That can be for many reasons, including safety.
Cancelled
Cancelled before anyone took part.

Expanded access (not trials)

Expanded access
Not a trial. This treatment can be requested outside a study, case by case, for people who qualify.
Expanded access (paused)
Not a trial. The treatment can normally be requested outside a study, but is unavailable right now.
Expanded access (ended)
Not a trial. The treatment could once be requested outside a study, but no longer can.
Approved
The treatment has been approved, so it is available normally rather than through this programme.

When the status isn't known

Details not published
The full record has not been published yet, so there is little to show here.
Status unknown
This status has not been confirmed recently, so it may be out of date.

First seen Jul 13, 2026 · Last updated Jul 30, 2026 · Updated 3 times

Summary

This study explores whether a gentle, non-invasive brain stimulation technique called transcranial alternating current stimulation (tACS) can help improve language recovery in people who have lost speech abilities after a stroke. Researchers will also test the same stimulation in healthy volunteers to understand how it affects normal language function. The goal is to see if tACS can boost performance on verbal short-term memory tasks and produce measurable changes in brain activity.

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)
What this could lead to
If successful, this could point toward a non-invasive way to boost language recovery in people with post-stroke aphasia.
What could go wrong
This is an early-stage study with only 50 participants, so results may not apply to everyone. The effects of tACS on language are still uncertain.

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

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

About 50 people

The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.

Started

Jan 2020

Expected to finish

Dec 2030

An estimate. End dates often move.

Lead sponsor

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

18 to 85 years

Sex

Anyone

Healthy volunteers

Accepted

You do not need to have the condition being studied to take part.

Show 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: Healthy Controls * 18 years of age or older * Fluent in English * No history of neurological or psychiatric disorders Stroke Patients * Diagnosed with post-stroke aphasia by referring physician/neuropsychologist * Consent date \>=1 months after stroke onset * Right-handed * Fluent in English * 18 years of age or older Exclusion Criteria: * Severe cognitive, auditory or visual impairments that would preclude cognitive and language testing * Presence of major untreated or unstable psychiatric disease * A chronic medical condition that is not treated or is unstable * The presence of cardiac stimulators or pacemakers * Any metal implants in the skull * Contraindications to MRI or tACS * History of seizures * History of dyslexia or other developmental learning disabilities

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Conditions

The condition(s) this trial relates to.

aphasia Language language disorder stroke disorder

As listed by the trial registrant

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

Aphasia Stroke

How to take part

Only the study team decides who joins. These are the ways to reach them.

  1. The places running it

    1 site. The list below names each one and where it is.

  2. The official record

    ClinicalTrials.gov lists the study team's own contact details, including names and phone numbers. We don't republish those.

    Open the record ↗

  3. 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

  • Medical College of Wisconsin

    RECRUITING

    Milwaukee, Wisconsin, 53226, United States

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