Can a 'temporal interference' electric field nudge the brain back toward awareness?

NCT ID NCT06822192

What the study statuses mean

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Recruitment status, easiest to join first

Recruiting now
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 This study
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 Results may not be published yet.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This status has not been confirmed recently, so it may be out of date.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 22, 2026 · Last updated Jul 23, 2026 · Updated 1 time

Summary

This trial tests whether a non-invasive brain stimulation technique called temporally interfering (TI) electrical stimulation can help people with disorders of consciousness, such as a minimally conscious state or unresponsive wakefulness syndrome. Participants receive either real TI stimulation or a sham version, and researchers measure changes in consciousness using the Coma Recovery Scale-Revised and brain activity markers. The goal is to see if TI can safely promote recovery of awareness in patients who have been unconscious for at least a month.

What this could mean

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

Active substance
temporally interfering electrical stimulation (TI)
What this could lead to
If effective, TI could offer a new way to help some patients regain awareness after severe brain injury.
What could go wrong
This is a small early-stage trial with only 28 participants, so results may not apply broadly. The treatment involves brain stimulation, which carries unknown risks in this population.

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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

28 people

The number who actually took part.

Started

Jan 2025

Finished

Apr 2026

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 80 years

Sex

Anyone

Healthy volunteers

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

Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.

Inclusion Criteria: In accordance with the international diagnostic criteria for MCS formulated by Giacino in 2002 or the diagnostic criteria for UWS proposed by Laureys in 2010; Patients with disease duration ≥28 days and unconscious improvement tendency in the past one month; No use of any sedative drugs or antiepileptic drugs (sodium or calcium channel blockers) in the past 1 month; stable vital signs; No obvious brain edema, hydrocephalus, and severe brain atrophy; Age from 18 to 80 years old; Informed consent was obtained from the patients' family members. Exclusion Criteria: Previous history of neurological or psychiatric disorders; Prior traumatic brain injury unrelated to the index injury; History of cancer; Taking sedative drugs or antiepileptic drugs in the past 1 month; Unstable vital signs; Skull defect; The patients' family members did not sign the informed consent.

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Conditions

The condition(s) this trial relates to.

Consciousness Disorders

As listed by the trial registrant

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

Contacts and locations

Locations

  • Hangzhou Mingzhou Brain Rehabilitation Hospital

    Hangzhou, Zhejiang, 310000, China

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