Spinal stimulation study aims to rewire movement after injury
NCT ID NCT05163639
First seen Jun 26, 2026 · Last updated Jun 27, 2026 · Updated 1 time
Summary
This early-phase study tests whether pairing brain stimulation with spinal cord stimulation can strengthen the signals that control hand muscles. Researchers will study healthy volunteers, people with spinal cord injury, and those with cervical myelopathy. The goal is to understand how this technique works and whether it could one day help restore movement.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- non-invasive brain and spinal cord stimulation
- What this could lead to
- If successful, this could point toward a non-invasive way to improve arm and hand function after spinal cord injury.
- What could go wrong
- This is a very early, small study focused on understanding how the stimulation works, not yet testing a treatment. It may not lead to any direct benefit for participants.
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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Early phase 1
The earliest testing in people: a first look at safety, in a very small group.
- Participants
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About 92 people
The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.
- Started
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Sep 2021
- Expected to finish
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Dec 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 to 80 years
- Sex
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Anyone
- Healthy volunteers
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Accepted
You do not need to have the condition being studied to take part.
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.
NON-INVASIVE Inclusion Criteria: (All participants) * Age between 18-80 years. * Must have stable prescription medication for 30 days prior to screening * Must be able to: abstain from alcohol, smoking and caffeine consumption on the day of each experiment; abstain from recreational drugs for the entirety of the study; commit to study requirements (i.e., 7 visits); provide informed consent. (Able-bodied participants) * No known central or peripheral neurological disease or injury. (SCI participants - including patients scheduled for intraoperative procedures) * Score of 1-4 (out of 5) on manual muscle testing of finger extension, finger flexion, or finger abduction in left or right hand. Exclusion criteria: (All participants) * Personal or extensive family history of seizures; * Ventilator dependence or patent tracheostomy site; * Use of medications that significantly lower seizure threshold, such as amphetamines, neuroleptics, dalfampridine, and bupropion; * History of stroke, brain tumor, brain abscess, or multiple sclerosis; * History of moderate or severe head trauma (loss of consciousness for greater than one hour or evidence of brain contusion or hemorrhage or depressed skull fracture on prior imaging); * History of implanted brain/spine/nerve stimulators, aneurysm clips, ferromagnetic metallic implants in the head (except for inside mouth); cochlear implants; cardiac pacemaker/defibrillator; intracardiac lines; currently increased intracranial pressure; or other contraindications to brain or spine stimulation; * Significant coronary artery or cardiac conduction disease; recent history of myocardial infarction and heart failure with an ejection fraction of less than 30% or with a New York Heart Association Functional Classification of Class III or IV; * Recent history (within past 6 months) of recurrent autonomic dysreflexia, defined as a syndrome of sudden rise in systolic pressure greater than 20 mm Hg or diastolic pressure greater than 10 mm Hg, without rise in heart rate, accompanied by symptoms such as headache, facial flushing, sweating, nasal congestion, and blurry vision (this will be closely monitored during all screening and testing procedures); * History of significant hearing problems; * History of bipolar disorder; * History of suicide attempt; * Active psychosis; * Recent history (\>1 year) of chemical substance dependency or significant psychosocial disturbance; * Heavy alcohol consumption (greater than equivalent of 5oz of liquor) within previous 48 hours; * Open skin lesions over the face, neck, shoulders, or arms; * Pregnancy; and * Unsuitable for study participation as determined by study physician. INTRA-OPERATIVE Inclusion Criteria: * Clinical indication for cervical spine surgery. Exclusion criteria: (For experiments involving cortical stimulation) * Epilepsy; * A history of skull surgery with metal implants; * Cochlear implants; * Patients with aneurysm stents in neck or brain blood vessels; * Evidence of skull shrapnel; (For experiments involving spinal cord stimulation) * Stimulation devices in the neck or chest (e.g., vagal nerve stimulation, cardiac patients with pacemakers)
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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
3 sites. 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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Bronx Veterans Medical Research Foundation, Inc
RECRUITINGNew York, New York, 10029, United States
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Columbia University Irving Medical Center
RECRUITINGNew York, New York, 10032, United States
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Weill Cornell Medicine
RECRUITINGNew York, New York, 10065, United States
More trials for these conditions
Other studies related to the condition(s) this trial covers.
- Can a brain implant let paralyzed people control computers with their minds?
- Mind over matter: can a wireless brain implant restore control for the paralyzed?
- Spinal zaps + robotic steps: a new hope for walking after injury?
- Mind over matter: could a smartphone app supercharge spine surgery recovery?
- Can a tailored surgical approach improve outcomes for spinal stenosis?
- Robotic exoskeleton takes on conventional therapy in spinal cord injury recovery trial