Electric brain boost tested for word-finding trouble after concussion
NCT ID NCT04869059
First seen Jun 26, 2026 · Last updated Jun 26, 2026 · Updated 1 time
Summary
This study tests whether a low-level electric current applied to the scalp (tDCS) can improve verbal retrieval in military veterans who have had a mild or moderate traumatic brain injury. 136 participants will receive either real or sham stimulation while doing memory tasks. The goal is to see if the treatment helps them recall words better, with follow-up tests up to 3 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)
- What this could lead to
- If it works, this could point toward a non-drug treatment to help people with brain injury find words more easily.
- What could go wrong
- This is an early-stage study with no phase, and the effect may be small or not last. The stimulation is mild, but individual results vary.
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 136 people
The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.
- Started
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Aug 2021
- Expected to finish
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Sep 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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18 to 75 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.
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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: Participants are to be between the ages of 18-75, have previously served in the US armed services, and have had a traumatic brain injury that has led to a verbal retrieval deficit based on neuropsychological testing criteria. Traumatic brain injury must be in the mild to moderate range based on evaluation, including, the Ohio State TBI Identification Method (administered by our research group). You must be fluent in speaking and reading English. Exclusion Criteria: Exclusion criteria include a history of a psychological or neurological disorder, including, dementia of any type, epilepsy or other seizure disorders, severe traumatic brain injury, post-traumatic stress disorder, brain tumor, present drug abuse, stroke, blood vessel abnormalities in the brain, Parkinson's disease, Huntington's disease, or multiple sclerosis. Additionally, exclusion criteria include inability to give informed consent; cranial implants or skull defects that affect tDCS administration; and use of medications that interact with or potentially interact with tDCS effects, including, anti-convulsants, amphetamines, L-dopa, carbamazepine, sulpiride, pergolide, lorazepam, rivastigmine, dextromethorphan, D-cycloserine, flunarizine, ropinirole, or citalopram.
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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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The University of Texas at Dallas
RECRUITINGDallas, Texas, 75235, United States
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Other studies related to the condition(s) this trial covers.
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