Improving Aphasia Using Electrical Brain Stimulation

Part of paid clinical trials in Syracuse, New York.

Sponsor
Syracuse University
Study ID
NCT04963803
Status
Completed

Conditions

Eligibility Criteria

Sex
ALL
Age
18 Years - N/A
Healthy Volunteers
Not accepted

Interventions

  • Active transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) — DEVICE
    Active transcranial direct current stimulation will be delivered using a Soterix mini-CT device. Participants receiving this treatment will be administered 2 milliamperes (mA) of current for 20 minutes/session for 10 sessions.
  • Sham transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) — DEVICE
    Sham transcranial direct current stimulation will be delivered using a Soterix mini-CT device. Participants receiving this treatment will be administered 2 milliamperes (mA) of current for 1 minute to simulate the experience of tDCS, after which the current will be ramped down to zero for the remaining 19 minutes of the session. Participants in this arm will receive sham stimulation for 10 sessions.
  • Language Specific Attention Treatment — BEHAVIORAL
    This is a specific type of speech-language therapy that focuses on simultaneously improving auditory comprehension and behavioral attention. All study participants will receive 10 sessions of this treatment.

Study Details

Language and communication are essential for almost every aspect of human life, but for people who have aphasia, a language processing disorder that can occur after stroke or brain injury, even simple conversations can become a formidable challenge. Speech and language therapy can help people recover their language ability, but often requires months or even years of therapy before a person is able to overcome these challenges. This research will investigate non-invasive brain stimulation as a way to enhance the effects of speech and language therapy, which may ultimately lead to better and faster recovery from stroke and aphasia. The investigators hypothesize that participants with aphasia who receive speech and language therapy paired with active electrical brain stimulation will improve significantly more on a language comprehension task than those who receive speech and language therapy paired with sham stimulation.

Key Dates

Start date
Jul 12, 2021
Status verified
Jan 2026
Primary completion
Nov 15, 2024
Completion
Dec 31, 2024

Study Design

Enrollment
23 participants (actual)
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Intervention model
PARALLEL
Primary purpose
TREATMENT

Arms

  • Experimental: Active transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) paired with speech-language therapy
    Active transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) will be delivered using a Soterix mini-CT device. Participants receiving this treatment will be administered 2 milliamperes (mA) of current for 20 minutes/session with the anode electrode placed over F3 and the cathode electrode placed over Fp2 (according to the 1020 system). The tDCS will be paired with 60 minutes of speech-language therapy focusing simultaneously improving auditory comprehension and behavioral attention. All study participants will receive 10 sessions of this combination treatment with no more than one session per day 2-3 times per week.
  • Sham Comparator: Sham transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) paired with speech-language therapy
    Sham transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) will be delivered using a Soterix mini-CT device. Participants receiving this treatment will be administered 2 milliamperes (mA) of current for 1 minute to simulate the experience of tDCS, after which the current will be ramped down to zero for the remaining 19 minutes of the session with the anode electrode placed over F3 and the cathode electrode placed over Fp2 (according to the 1020 system). The tDCS will be paired with 60 minutes of speech-language therapy focusing simultaneously improving auditory comprehension and behavioral attention. All study participants will receive 10 sessions of this combination treatment with no more than one session per day 2-3 times per week.

Primary Outcome Measure

Language Specific Attention Treatment Probe [ Time Frame: Pre-treatment: Baseline measure collected before treatment; Post-treatment: 5-6 weeks after baseline; Follow-up: 10-11 weeks after baseline ]

Locations (1)

FacilityCityStateZIPSite coordinators
Syracuse UniversitySyracuseNew York13244-

Find similar trials in Syracuse, NY

By condition
Stroke
By specialty
NeurologyBrain disorders
By research site
Syracuse University· Syracuse, NY

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