Zapping the brain at the moment voices start
NCT ID NCT06361160
First seen Sep 21, 2026 · Last updated Sep 21, 2026
Summary
Researchers are testing whether magnetic stimulation of a brain region called the temporo-parietal junction can shorten auditory hallucinations in people with treatment-resistant schizophrenia. Participants receive active or sham stimulation at the moment a hallucination begins, over 12 weekly sessions. The goal is to see whether this timed approach reduces how long the voices last, as a step toward a device that could detect and interrupt hallucinations automatically.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) of the temporo-parietal junction
- What this could lead to
- If it works, this could point toward a closed-loop brain-stimulation device that detects and interrupts auditory hallucinations in real time.
- What could go wrong
- The trial is small, with 20 participants, and tests only whether hallucinations shorten during stimulation sessions. A positive signal would not prove lasting relief, and TMS can cause scalp discomfort or headaches.
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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 20 people
The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.
- Started
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May 2024
- Expected to finish
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Sep 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 years and older
- 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: * Age \> 18 years old * Schizophrenic Disorder (Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders, DSM-5-TR, American Psychiatric Association, 2013) * AVHs that have resisted to at least two properly conducted antipsychotic therapies at an effective dose for at least 8 weeks (criteria of Kinon et al., 1993) * Frequent AVHs (at least 10 times per hour) (Fovet et al., 2022) * Unmodified antipsychotic dosage for 30 days prior to inclusion in the protocol * AVH are the main residual symptom of schizophrenia. * Consent to participate in the study Exclusion Criteria: * Pregnancy (based on date of last menstrual period with possibility of urine test if in doubt) * Anticonvulsant therapy * Neurological disorder (e.g., multiple sclerosis, epilepsy) * Current addictive behavior (except tobacco and cannabis, widely used in this clinical population; Fovet et al., 2022) * Contraindication to MRI (i.e., presence of ferromagnetic material or implanted neurostimulation devices due to the risk of displacement or dysfunction such as cochlear implants, cardiac pacemakers, metal splinters in the body following an accident, permanent makeup applied less than 6 months ago, neurosurgical clips, deep brain or vagus nerve stimulation devices, baclofen pumps) (Lefaucheur et al., 2011) * Morphological criteria: weight \> 130 Kg, abdominal circumference conditioned by the opening of the magnet, shoulder width * Lack of coverage by the social security system * Current participation in another interventional research protocol or being in the exclusion period of a previous research protocol * Refusal to be informed of an brain anomaly detected in the MRI * Person under guardianship or curatorship * Behavioral disorders or delusions likely to prevent the MRI or rTMS from being performed under good conditions (left to the discretion of the investigator at baseline).
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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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Groupe Hospitalo-Universitaire Paris Psychiatrie & Neurosciences
RECRUITINGParis, France
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