Effect of Prolonged Electrical Stimulation on Neural Plasticity in Spinal Cord Injury
Completed · Not applicable · Has a placebo group
Conditions studied: Spinal Cord Injury
In brief
Electrical stimulation (pulses of electricity applied over the skin of your wrist) and activity-based hand exercise have been shown to improve motor skill and strength in individuals with stroke and have recently been shown to also have an effect on individuals with spinal cord injury. Therefore, the purpose of this research study is to investigate whether electrical stimulation alone or electrical stimulation followed by activity-based training produces gains in pinch strength (how hard you can squeeze your thumb and pointer finger together) and upper extremity function (how well your arm and hand can perform activities) in individuals with spinal cord injury.
Key facts
- Study ID
- NCT00387673
- Run by
- VA Office of Research and Development
- People needed
- 11
- Starts
- 2006-10-01
- Expected to finish
- 2011-06-01
- Last updated by the study team
- 2017-06-16
Who can join
Age: 18 and older, up to 60. Sex: any. Healthy volunteers: not accepted.
You may qualify if…
- Trace voluntary thumb movement or able to pick up small objects with a tenodesis grip
- Between ages 18 and 60
- Spastic paresis (manifest as spasms, clonus, and/or hyperreflexia) due to neurologically incomplete SCI
- Medically stable
- Communicate questions/needs and answer yes/no questions reliably.
You may not qualify if…
- Altered cognitive status
- Level of injury caudal to the C7 level
- History of CVA, seizures
- Implanted metal devices in the head, less than one year post injury, and severe spasticity of the muscles of the upper extremities (defined by a score of 2 or higher on the Modified Ashworth Spasticity Scale)
- Patients with pacemakers will also be excluded from this study.
Where it is running
- VA Medical Center, Miami — Miami, Florida, United States
Full record on ClinicalTrials.gov
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