Brain zaps for fibromyalgia: new study tests if tDCS eases pain
NCT ID NCT05845528
First seen Jun 27, 2026 · Last updated Jun 27, 2026
Summary
This completed study tested whether a non-invasive brain stimulation technique called tDCS can reduce pain and improve daily function in 100 women with fibromyalgia. Researchers also looked at how a person's tendency to respond to placebo might affect results. Participants received either real or fake tDCS sessions, with some continuing at home.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) device
- What this could lead to
- If successful, this could point toward a personalized, non-drug treatment option for fibromyalgia pain and daily function.
- What could go wrong
- This is a small, completed trial with no phase designation, so results are preliminary. The effect may be small or not last long, and not everyone may respond.
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
-
100 people
The number who actually took part.
- Started
-
Sep 2021
- Finished
-
Jun 2024
- Lead sponsor
-
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
-
18 to 65 years
- Sex
-
Female participants only
- Healthy volunteers
-
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: * Women aged 18 to 65 years; who can read and write, with a confirmed diagnosis of FM according to the American College of Rheumatology criteria (2010-2016). Pain score equal to or greater than six on the Numerical Pain Scale (NPS 0-10) on most days of the last 3 months. Exclusion Criteria: * Residing outside the greater Porto Alegre area and pregnancy. Contraindications to TMS and tDCS: metallic implant in the brain; medical devices implanted in the brain, cardiac pacemakers; cochlear implant; history of alcohol or drug abuse in the last 6 months; neurological pathologies; hx of head trauma or neurosurgery; decompensated systemic diseases and chronic inflammatory diseases (lupus, rheumatoid arthritis, Reiter's syndrome); uncompensated hypothyroidism; personal history of cancer, past or undergoing treatment.
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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.
Contacts and locations
Locations
-
Hospital de Clinicas de Porto Alegre
Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul, 90.450-120, Brazil
More trials for these conditions
Other studies related to the condition(s) this trial covers.
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- Can qigong loosen the grip of fibromyalgia? trial tests two styles
- Can a light bulb dial down chronic pain?
- Can a Hands-On nerve technique ease Fibromyalgia's grip?
- Why some days hurt more: charting Fibromyalgia's daily swings
- Zapping the vagus nerve: a new hope for fibromyalgia pain?