Could your breath help tame nerve pain after spinal injury?
NCT ID NCT07659743
First seen Jun 27, 2026 · Last updated Jul 31, 2026 · Updated 1 time
Summary
This study tests a device called BreEStim that uses electrical stimulation timed with your breathing to reduce nerve pain after spinal cord injury. About 66 adults with long-term spinal cord injury and stable pain will receive either active or sham treatment. The goal is to see if this approach can safely lower pain levels.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- BreEStim (breathing-controlled electrical stimulation device)
- What this could lead to
- If it works, this could offer a new, non-drug way to manage chronic neuropathic pain after spinal cord injury.
- What could go wrong
- This is a small, early-stage trial with only 66 participants, so results may not apply to everyone. The sham control helps, but the effect may be modest or not last long.
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 66 people
The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.
- Expected to start
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Oct 2026
An estimate. Start dates often move.
- Expected to finish
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Sep 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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22 to 80 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.
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: * has a history of SCI \> 1 year * has a DN4 (Douleur Neuropathique en 4 Questions) score of 4 or greater * has neuropathic pain \>3 months * is stable on oral pain medications at least one month * Able to tolerate BreEStim treatment for 1 minute Exclusion Criteria: * is on a mechanical ventilator * is currently having active urinary tract infection (UTI) * does not have any residual sensation in the arms * has other pain (musculoskeletal, visceral etc.), but not neuropathic, e.g., shoulder pain from wheelchair use * has a pacemaker to avoid possible side effect of electrical stimulation * is not able to follow commands, or to give consent * has asthma or other pulmonary disease * has a history of cardiac pathology, implanted pacemakers, or current use of rhythm altering medication like beta-blockers * has baclofen pump or deep brain implants * has respiratory tract/sinus infection and rhinorrhea * has low motor neuron injury that no responses will be triggered by electrical stimulation * has severe mental disorders (e.g., depression, substance abuse) and is receiving active treatment and frequent monitoring * is not medically stable
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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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The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston
Houston, Texas, 77030, United States
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