Brain 'Car Wash' ultrasound trial aims to fight Alzheimer's
NCT ID NCT07573982
First seen Jun 25, 2026 · Last updated Jun 27, 2026 · Updated 1 time
Summary
This pilot study tests whether a noninvasive ultrasound device can safely help clear waste from the brain in people at risk for Alzheimer's. Fifteen adults with signs of amyloid buildup will receive either real or sham ultrasound sessions over four weeks. The main goal is to check safety and tolerability, while also looking at early signs of cognitive or biomarker improvement.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- Ultrasonic Debris Clearance (UDC) device
- What this could lead to
- If successful, this could point toward a new way to slow or prevent Alzheimer's by helping the brain clear waste.
- What could go wrong
- This is a very early, small pilot study (15 people) focused only on safety and feasibility. It may not show any benefit, and the device might cause side effects like headaches or imaging changes.
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 15 people
The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.
- Expected to start
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Jul 2026
An estimate. Start dates often move.
- Expected to finish
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Jul 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.
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: 1.1. Physician-reported amyloid positivity diagnosed by amyloid positron emission tomography (PET) OR historic CSF positivity of Abeta42, total tau, or phosphorylated tau OR positivity of plasma pTau-217. 1.2. Age ≥ 18 years. No gender/sex, racial, or ethnic preference. Subjects greater than 60 years of age will be assumed to be non-pregnant based on age and expected post-menopausal status. Female subjects under the age of 60 will complete a two-step assessment of pregnancy status (a self-reported assessment of menopause that proceeds to a urine human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) test to confirm non-pregnancy, if the participant is not post-menopausal). 1.3. CDR Scale score less than or equal to 1.0, consistent with mild, very mild, or no dementia. 1.4. Ability and willingness to comply with the study procedures (six sessions sitting in a procedure chair for up to one hour for the procedure, with an ultrasound device placed on their scalp; additional time for the MRI assessment, blood draws, and cognitive assessments). 1.5. Ability to understand and the willingness to sign a written informed consent document. Exclusion Criteria: 2.1. Dementia of moderate or higher severity (CDR \> 1.0) 2.2. Intracranial tumors, acute or chronic hemorrhage (beyond petechiae/microhemmorhage), or other current or historic central nervous system specific pathology. Baseline MRI studies will be screened by the protocol director to ensure no exclusionary intracranial pathology is present. 2.3. Any other comorbidity that would prevent adequate interpretation of the study results per the treatment team (e.g. congenital brain malformations without clinical importance) 2.4. Ultrasound attenuators along the ultrasound beam path (metal, air, or bulky calcification) including thick hair or related adornments that cannot be undone for the study (e.g. turbans, dreadlocks, hairweaves/wigs) that would prevent adequate ultrasound gel coupling of the device to the scalp or could trap air in the ultrasound beam path. 2.5. Contraindications to MRI (unknown device, claustrophobia) or metallic hardware in the head that prevent adequate MRI visualization of the brain 2.6. Allergy or similar intolerance to the materials used for ultrasound device coupling (ultrasound gel, silicone) 2.7. Receipt of anti-amyloid monoclonal antibody therapy within 6 months prior to screening 2.8. Moderate or greater depressive symptoms at screening, defined as a Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9) total score \>= 10. 2.9. Clinically significant suicidal ideation or behavior as assessed by the Columbia-Suicide Severity Rating Scale (C-SSRS) 2.10. Clinically significant hematologic abnormalities, defined as hematocrit \< 35% for male or \< 32% for female, absolute neutrophil cell count \< 1500/uL, absolute lymphocyte count \< 900/uL, or platelet count \< 120,000/uL 2.11. Clinically significant hepatic, renal, respiratory, cardiovascular, or metabolic disease that increases risk or interferes with interpretation, defined as ALT/AST/ALP \> 1.5 ULN, or eGFR \< 50 mL/min/1.73m2, or recent MI/unstable angina/HF/cardiomyopathy within 6 months, 2.12. Significant bradycardia(\<50/min) or tachycardia (\>100/min) 2.13. Poorly controlled BP 2.14. Uncontrolled diabetes, defined as HbA1c \> 7.5 2.15. Active clinically significant infection or other systemic illness affecting the CNS
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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
The full official record for this study. This one lists no contact details, but it is the first place any would appear.
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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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Stanford University
Stanford, California, 94305, United States
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