Shocking the nerve: can a stimulator make pain blocks better?
NCT ID NCT06566664
First seen Jun 27, 2026 · Last updated Aug 28, 2026 · Updated 3 times
Summary
This study tests whether adding a nerve stimulator to standard ultrasound guidance improves the quality of nerve blocks for upper limb surgery. 82 adults having elective arm surgery will be randomly assigned to receive the block with or without the stimulator active. Researchers will measure how quickly the block takes effect and how long it lasts.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- B Braun HNS 12 nerve stimulator
- What this could lead to
- If it works, this could show that using a nerve stimulator alongside ultrasound makes nerve blocks faster and more effective for pain control.
- What could go wrong
- This is a small, early-stage study at one center. The stimulator is already used for nerve localization, so the benefit may be small or not apply to all patients.
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 150 people
The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.
- Started
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Jul 2025
- Expected to finish
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Jul 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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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.
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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: * Undergoing elective upper limb surgery with a planned brachial plexus nerve block Exclusion Criteria: * Under 18 years old * ASA score above III * Chronic pain condition with daily milligrams of morphine equivalent \> 30 * Poorly controlled psychiatric condition * Coagulopathy * Active infection * Moderate, severe or progressing neuropathy * COPD/Chronic oxygen user * Pregnancy * Incarceration * Unable to consent * BMI \> 35 * Pacemaker
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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
The full official record for this study. This one lists no contact details, but it is the first place any would appear.
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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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Stanford University Hospital
Stanford, California, 94305, United States
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