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Brain zaps show promise for gulf war Vets' pain and mood

NCT ID NCT04046536

Symptom relief Sponsor: VA Office of Research and Development Source: ClinicalTrials.gov ↗

What the study statuses mean

This study's is highlighted.

Recruitment status, easiest to join first

Recruiting now
This trial is taking on new participants right now.
Not yet recruiting
Registered, but not yet taking participants.
By invitation only
Not open to general applications. Only people the study team invites can take part.
Paused
Paused for now. It may or may not start again.
Ongoing
Running, but no longer taking on new participants.
Completed This study
The trial has finished. Results may not be published yet.
Stopped early
Stopped early, before it reached the end. That can be for many reasons, including safety.
Cancelled
Cancelled before anyone took part.

Expanded access (not trials)

Expanded access
Not a trial. This treatment can be requested outside a study, case by case, for people who qualify.
Expanded access (paused)
Not a trial. The treatment can normally be requested outside a study, but is unavailable right now.
Expanded access (ended)
Not a trial. The treatment could once be requested outside a study, but no longer can.
Approved
The treatment has been approved, so it is available normally rather than through this programme.

When the status isn't known

Details not published
The full record has not been published yet, so there is little to show here.
Status unknown
This status has not been confirmed recently, so it may be out of date.

First seen Jun 27, 2026 · Last updated Jun 27, 2026

Summary

This completed study tested whether repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) can relieve pain, headaches, depression, and other symptoms in 204 veterans with Gulf War Illness. Participants received rTMS, a non-invasive brain stimulation, and reported changes in pain, mood, sleep, and quality of life. The goal was to find a new way to ease the lasting symptoms of this condition.

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

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

204 people

The number who actually took part.

Started

Oct 2019

Finished

Dec 2025

Lead sponsor

A government agency

The lead sponsor is a US federal agency other than the NIH.

Who can take part

This study's own entry requirements. Only the study team can say for certain whether you qualify.

Ages

18 to 65 years

Sex

Anyone

Healthy volunteers

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

Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.

Inclusion Criteria: * Male or female under 65 years of age who served in the military for at least 30 consecutive days between August 1, 1990, and July 31, 1991 in the Persian Gulf War region * CDC Criteria for GWVI (GWI) * Kansas Criteria for GWVI (GWI) * International Headache Society Criteria for Migraine Headache without aura * Average Overall Daily Muscle Pain Intensity \>3 on 0-10 a NPS * Average Overall Daily Extremities Joint Pain Intensity \>3 on 0-10 a NPS * Headache Exacerbation/attack once a week with the average intensity \>3 on a 0-10 NPS, lasting \> 1 hour in the past three months * Hamilton Rating Scale of Depression (HRSD) greater than or equal to 14 based on the sum of scores for the first 17 items Exclusion Criteria: * Pregnancy * History of pacemaker implant * Any ferromagnetic (e.g. bullet fragment, shrapnel, device implant) in the brain or body that will prohibit the patients from having a brain MRI * History of dementia, major psychiatric diseases, or life-threatening diseases * Presence of any other chronic neuropathic pain states such as Complex Regional Pain Syndrome or Painful Peripheral Neuropathy * History of seizure * Pending litigation * Low back pain with mechanical origins such as lumbar radiculopathy or radiculitis or lumbar facet arthropathy * Lack of ability to understand the experimental protocol and to adequately communicate in English * History of Traumatic Brain injury * Chronic Tension or Cluster Headache * Ongoing Cognitive Rehabilitation or Treatment of PTSD

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Conditions

The condition(s) this trial relates to.

Depression depressive disorder migraine without aura persian gulf syndrome

As listed by the trial registrant

The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.

Depression Gulf war illness

Contacts and locations

Locations

  • Atlanta VA Medical and Rehab Center, Decatur, GA

    Decatur, Georgia, 30033, United States

  • VA Palo Alto Health Care System, Palo Alto, CA

    Palo Alto, California, 94304-1290, United States

  • VA San Diego Healthcare System, San Diego, CA

    San Diego, California, 92161-0002, United States

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