Can brain zaps help stroke survivors regain hand control?
NCT ID NCT06765642
First seen Jun 27, 2026 · Last updated Jun 27, 2026
Summary
This study is testing three different doses of a non-invasive brain stimulation technique called rTMS in 26 chronic stroke survivors with arm weakness. The goal is to see which dose best boosts brain signals to the hand muscles and improves motor learning. Participants will receive each dose in separate sessions, and researchers will measure changes in brain activity and hand performance.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- Repetitive Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (rTMS)
- What this could lead to
- If successful, this could help identify the best dose of brain stimulation to improve hand function after a stroke.
- What could go wrong
- This is a very small, early-stage study (26 people) focused on measuring brain activity, not on proving a treatment works. Results may not apply to all stroke survivors.
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 26 people
The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.
- Started
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Jun 2025
- Expected to finish
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Apr 2027
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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21 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: 1. Age \>=21 years old of any race or gender 2. First-ever ischemic or hemorrhagic stroke (neuroimaging verified) at least 3 months from stroke onset 3. Unilateral arm weakness measured by FM-UM scale \<= 62 out of 66 4. Inducible rest motor threshold and testing motor threshold recorded from the affected first dorsal interosseous (FDI) muscle from the study subject Exclusion criteria 1. Bilateral strokes (infarcts and/or hematoma) 2. Other co-existent neuromuscular disorders affecting upper extremity motor impairment. 3. History of medically uncontrolled depression or other neuropsychiatric disorders despite medications either before or after a stroke that may affect the subject's ability to participate in the study. 4. Uncontrolled hypertension despite medical treatment(s) at the time of randomization, defined as SBP≥185 mmHg or DBP≥110 mmHg (patient can be treated, reassessed and randomized later). 5. Presence of any MRI/rTMS risk factors including but not limited to: 1. an electrically, magnetically, or mechanically activated metallic or nonmetallic implant including cardiac pacemaker, intracerebral vascular clips or any other electrically sensitive support system. 2. a non-fixed metallic part in any part of the body, including a previous metallic injury to the eye. 3. history of seizure disorder before stroke or seizure after stroke. 4. preexisting scalp lesion or bone defect or hemicraniectomy. 6. Concurrent enrollment in another interventional stroke recovery study. 7. Concerns that the subject cannot comply with study procedures and visits. 8. Pregnant individuals
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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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Duke University Medical Center
RECRUITINGDurham, North Carolina, 27710, United States
More trials for these conditions
Other studies related to the condition(s) this trial covers.
- Robot could let stroke patients rehab their hands at home without a therapist
- Moving patterns may help stroke survivors read faster
- Vibrating wearables put stroke walking to the test
- Robot plus electrical stimulation aims to rebuild arm movement after stroke
- Can a checklist and heart monitor stop repeat strokes?
- Heart hole or stroke trigger? global registry tracks who gets closure and what happens next