Zapping the brain with slow electrical waves may cut seizures in drug-resistant epilepsy
NCT ID NCT07684352
First seen Jul 06, 2026 · Last updated Jul 07, 2026 · Updated 1 time
Summary
This study tests a non-invasive brain stimulation technique called slow-oscillatory transcranial direct current stimulation (so-tDCS) in people with focal epilepsy that doesn't respond to medication. Ten participants received 14 days of twice-daily sessions, with the stimulation targeted to the area of the brain where their seizures start. The goal is to see if this approach can safely reduce seizure frequency and abnormal 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
- slow-oscillatory transcranial direct current stimulation (so-tDCS) device
- What this could lead to
- If it works, this could offer a non-invasive, drug-free option to reduce seizures in people with epilepsy that doesn't respond to medication.
- What could go wrong
- This is a very small pilot study with only 10 participants and no placebo group. Larger, sham-controlled trials are needed to confirm if the benefit is real and lasting.
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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10 people
The number who actually took part.
- Started
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Jan 2024
- Finished
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Oct 2024
- 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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7 to 60 years
- 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.
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Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.
Inclusion criteria were established as follows:(1)a confirmed diagnosis of focal-onset seizures, with or without focal-to-bilateral tonic-clonic evolution, according to the ILAE 2017 classification; (2)a disease duration of at least 2 years; (3)pharmacoresistance, defined as failure of adequately tried, appropriately chosen, and well-tolerated trials of at least two antiseizure medications (ASMs); (4)a stable ASM regimen for at least 4 weeks prior to baseline with agreement to maintain the same regimen throughout the study; (5)concurrent use of one to five ASMs; (6)at least two seizures during the 4-week baseline observation period. Exclusion criteria included:(1) psychogenic nonepileptic seizures; (2) progressive neurological or systemic disorders other than epilepsy; (3) pregnancy or breastfeeding; (4) substance abuse; (5) the presence of implanted electrical medical devices.
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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.
Contacts and locations
Locations
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The First Hospital of Hebei Medical University
Shijiazhuang, Hebei, 050000, China
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Other studies related to the condition(s) this trial covers.