Could magnetic pulses to the brain ease unexplained physical symptoms?
NCT ID NCT05161819
First seen Jun 27, 2026 · Last updated Jun 27, 2026
Summary
This study tests whether a non-invasive brain stimulation technique called repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) can reduce physical distress and health anxiety in people with somatic symptom disorder. Thirty adults aged 20–70 will receive either real or sham rTMS in a crossover design, meaning each person will try both. The goal is to see if this treatment can help when standard options haven't worked.
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 it works, this could offer a non-drug option to ease troubling physical symptoms and health worries for people with somatic symptom disorder.
- What could go wrong
- This is a small, early-phase study with only 30 participants, so results may not apply to everyone. The sham control means some may not benefit, and rTMS can cause mild side effects like headache or scalp discomfort.
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 30 people
The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.
- Started
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Aug 2022
- Expected to finish
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Dec 2026
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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20 to 70 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: * Patient with somatic symptom disorder (confirmed by psychiatrists) * Age 20-70 Exclusion Criteria: * Having psychotic symptoms or cognitive impairment * Having potentially lethal illness * Using cardiac pacemakers or defibrillators * Currently pregnant or having plans to become pregnant within the next three months * Received rTMS treatment within three months * Cannot read the questionnaires by oneself * Having to take the following medications persistently: bupropion \>300 mg/day、TCA、clozapine、chlorpromazine、foscarnet、ganciclovir、ritonavir、theophylline
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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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National Taiwan University Hospital Yunlin Branch
RECRUITINGDouliu, Yunlin, 640, Taiwan
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