NCT06987682Recruiting
Stimulating Postural Control to Augment Rehabilitation After Cerebral Stroke (SPARC): a Pilot Trial
Source: ClinicalTrials.gov · Last updated 23 Mar 2026
Brief summary (registry, in English)
People living with stroke have a high risk of falling and this risk increases as mobility improves over the first year post-stroke. Despite the high number of falls, there is a lack of interventions to prevent falls after stroke. One possible solution is to alter nerve activity through delivery of a stimulus, such as electrical stimulation. The purpose of this study is to describe and compare clinical, biomechanical and nerve-related outcomes between individuals with stroke who receive RBT with tSCS and those who receive RBT with sham tSCS.
- Status (registry)
- Recruiting
- Study type
- Interventional
- Enrollment
- 16 (estimated)
- First submitted
- 15 May 2025
- Start date
- 21 May 2025
- Primary completion date
- Jun 2027
- Lead sponsor
- University Health Network, Toronto
- Diseases
- Stroke
- NCT number
- NCT06987682
What you commit to
- Study type: Interventional
- Planned participants: 16
- From 21 May 2025 to the primary completion date, Jun 2027
- 1 site in 1 country
- Visits and tests: ask the trial team, the registry does not list them
Built from the registry fields of ClinicalTrials.gov. It describes the study, not your situation.
Who cannot take part
Copied verbatim from ClinicalTrials.gov and grouped by topic. Only the trial team decides who can take part.
Prior treatment
- A prior lower extremity fragility fracture
- Previous participation in tSCS within the past 2 years (May affect blinding integrity. Likely uncommon; FES is rarely used in Canada post-stroke.)
Other illness
- Any condition other than stroke that significantly affects their postural control (e.g. vestibular disorder, vision loss)
- Contraindications for electrical stimulation (i.e. implanted electronic device, active cancer or radiation in past six months, uncontrolled epilepsy, skin rash/wound at an electrode site, pregnancy, active deep vein thrombosis)
- Contraindications for TMS (i.e. seizures, metal in the head)
Other
- A planned injection of botulinum toxin to the legs during the intervention period
- Peripheral nerve damage in the legs
Who the study is looking for
- Aged 18 years or greater
- Diagnosed with a middle cerebral artery stroke \>1 year ago
- Community-dwelling (i.e. not living in long-term care or other inpatient setting)
- Able to stand independently for 60 seconds
- Able to understand spoken English
Age in the registry: 18 years to - · Sex: All · Does not accept healthy volunteers
Sites (1)
Sites in registry order. Pick your city on the disease page to sort them by distance.
| Site | City | Country | Site status |
|---|---|---|---|
| KITE Research Institute, Toronto Rehabilitation Institute - University Health Network Coordinator of this site? Confirm its status | Toronto | Canada | Recruiting |
This page is information, not medical advice. Discuss any trial with your doctor.