Gentle ear or neck zaps may help stroke survivors regain arm use and thinking skills

This study tests whether a gentle, non-invasive nerve stimulation (called tVNS) applied to the ear or neck can improve arm movement, thinking, and quality of life when paired with standard therapy in people who had a stroke 3–6 months ago. About 54 adults who had their first ischemic stroke will be randomly assigned to one of two stimulation methods or a sham group. The goal is to see if adding nerve stimulation to task-specific training leads to better recovery than therapy alone.