Scientists watch Brain's hidden electrical waves after trauma
NCT ID NCT03321370
First seen Jun 25, 2026 · Last updated Jun 26, 2026 · Updated 1 time
Summary
This study places thin electrode strips on the brain surface of 10 patients who have had surgery for severe traumatic brain injury. For 1 to 3 weeks in the ICU, the electrodes record abnormal electrical waves called cortical spreading depolarizations. The goal is to pinpoint where these waves start and how they relate to damage seen on brain scans. This is a monitoring-only study, not a treatment trial.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- What this could lead to
- If successful, this could help doctors better understand how the brain is injured after trauma and possibly guide future treatments.
- What could go wrong
- This is a very small, early study with only 10 participants. It is purely observational and not testing any treatment, so it may not lead to direct patient benefits.
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.
- Participants
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About 10 people
The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.
- Started
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Aug 2019
- Expected to finish
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Nov 2025
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.
Who is studied
Patients will be recruited from the population of severe TBI patients clinically judged to require neurosurgical intervention who present through the emergency department or upon direct transfer to the neurosurgery service at Hennepin County Medical Center. The target sample size for this preliminary study is 10 subjects.
- Ages
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18 years and older
- Sex
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Anyone
- Healthy volunteers
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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 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: * Patient recommended to undergo craniectomy or craniotomy for the treatment of acute TBI Exclusion Criteria: * Wound determined to be contaminated * Decompression is performed only in the posterior fossa * Known systemic infection * Pregnancy
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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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Hennepn Healthcare
RECRUITINGMinneapolis, Minnesota, 55404, United States
More trials for these conditions
Other studies related to the condition(s) this trial covers.
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- Why a simple fall can cause brain bleeding in older adults
- Bedside ultrasound could flag hidden brain injury decline
- Zapping the brain to restore lost vision
- Machine learning may forecast brain decline after head injury
- MRI tracer could expose hidden brain energy crisis after head injury