Can conversation unlock clues to ALS speech decline?
NCT ID NCT06266403
First seen Aug 07, 2026 · Last updated Aug 07, 2026
Summary
This study investigates how engaging in structured conversations affects the speech of people with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) compared to typical speakers. Participants will complete speaking tasks both alone and with a partner, allowing researchers to measure speech clarity, sound patterns, and conversational flow. The goal is to understand how social interaction influences communication in ALS, which could inform future therapeutic approaches.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- Structured communicative interaction tasks
- What this could lead to
- If successful, this could inform communication strategies and interventions to help people with ALS maintain effective verbal interaction.
- What could go wrong
- This is an observational study, so it won't directly test a treatment. Results may not apply to all people with ALS, and the measures are exploratory.
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 300 people
The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.
- Started
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Nov 2024
- Expected to finish
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Feb 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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18 to 90 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: Speakers with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) (PALS-people with ALS) * diagnosis of ALS following the revised EL Escorial criteria * no history of other neurological conditions (e.g., stroke) * no cognitive impairment assessed by Telephone Montreal Cognitive Assessment (mini MoCA) * detectable speech disturbance according to the ALS Functional Rating Scale-Revised (ALSFRS-R) * the ability to produce single words * being a native speaker of American English (AE). Age-matched Speakers * passing the remote hearing screening * having no known speech, language, or neurological disorders per self-report * no cognitive impairment assessed by Telephone Montreal Cognitive Assessment (mini MoCA) * being a functionally native monolingual speaker of American English. Unfamiliar Interlocutors * passing the remote hearing screening * having no known speech, language or neurological disorders per self-report * being a native monolingual speaker of American English * having no experience communicating with people with dysarthria * being between the ages of 18 and 40. Exclusion Criteria: * None - if volunteer meets the inclusion criteria, then they will be enrolled
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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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Speech Core, Pennsylvania State University
RECRUITINGUniversity Park, Pennsylvania, 16802, United States
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