Could a mild zap to the brain help you find your words?
NCT ID NCT05386394
First seen Jun 27, 2026 · Last updated Jun 27, 2026
Summary
This Phase II trial tests whether a safe, non-invasive brain stimulation technique called tDCS, combined with language therapy, can improve word-finding in people with primary progressive aphasia (PPA). The study enrolls 180 adults aged 50–90 with certain types of PPA. Participants receive either real or sham tDCS during therapy sessions, and researchers measure changes in speaking accuracy right after treatment and again three months later.
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) — a gentle electrical current applied to the brain
- What this could lead to
- If it works, this could provide a safe, at-home-usable treatment to help people with primary progressive aphasia speak and name objects more accurately.
- What could go wrong
- This is a mid-stage trial with 180 participants, so results are not yet proven. The improvement may be small or not last long, and not everyone may benefit.
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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Phase 2
Tests whether the treatment actually works, and watches for side effects, in a larger group.
- Participants
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About 180 people
The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.
- Started
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Feb 2024
- Expected to finish
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Feb 2028
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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50 to 90 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.
Inclusion Criteria: * Presence of aphasia attributable to non-fluent PPA or logopenic PPA * High school education (or more) * Between the ages of 50 and 90 * Must be able to understand the nature of the study and give informed consent Exclusion Criteria: * Cognitive impairment of sufficient severity to preclude giving informed consent (Mini Mental State Examination \[MMSE\] less than 15) * Any unrelated neurologic or physical condition that impairs communication ability * History of unrelated neurological conditions, including but not limited to traumatic brain injury (TBI), stroke, or small vessel disease, that has resulted in a neurologic deficit * Any additional neurological condition that would likely reduce the safety of study participation, including central nervous system (CNS) vasculitis, intracranial tumor, intracranial aneurysm, multiple sclerosis, or arteriovenous malformations * A medically unstable cardiopulmonary or metabolic disorder * Individuals with pacemakers or implantable cardiac defibrillators * Terminal illness associated with survival of less than 12 months * Major active psychiatric illness that may interfere with required study procedures or treatments, as determined by the enrolling physician * Current abuse of alcohol or drugs, prescription or otherwise * Participant in another drug, device, or biologics trial within 30 days prior to enrollment * Nursing a child, pregnant, or intending to become pregnant during the study * Left-handedness Exclusion for tDCS, specifically: * History of spontaneous or partial complex seizures or unexplained loss of consciousness within 6 months of enrollment * Subjects with metallic objects in the face or head other than dental apparatus, such as braces, fillings, or implants * Subjects with previous craniotomy or any breach in the skull Exclusion for MRI, specifically: * Presence of any of the following devices: cardiac pacemaker, other pacemakers (for carotid sinus, insulin pumps, nerve stimulators, lead wires or similar wires), optic implant, implanted cardiac defibrillator, aneurysm clip, any electronically/magnetically/mechanically activated implant, ferromagnetic implants (coils, filters, stents; metal sutures or staples) * Presence of any of the following: pregnancy, claustrophobia, metal in eye or orbit, tattooed eyeliner
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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 in 2 countries. 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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Baycrest Centre for Geriatric Care
RECRUITINGToronto, Ontario, M6A 2E1, Canada
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Johns Hopkins Hospital
RECRUITINGBaltimore, Maryland, 21287, United States
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University of Pennsylvania
RECRUITINGPhiladelphia, Pennsylvania, 19104, United States
More trials for these conditions
Other studies related to the condition(s) this trial covers.
- Can retraining word meanings restore lost speech?
- Can a synthetic cannabinoid calm agitation in frontotemporal dementia?
- Zapping the brain to save words: new hope for PPA?
- Zap your brain to sharper thinking? new trial tests TIS for memory loss
- New support program aims to help spanish-speaking families facing progressive aphasia
- Can speech therapy help those losing their words? new trial aims to find out