Nerve Stimulation to Study Spinal Sensory Pathways in People With Stroke
Studies neck nerve reflexes using stimulation during surgery in stroke patients and healthy adults.
Plain-language title generated from the registry record
Registry title: Stimulation-Based Modulation of Spinal and Cortical Sensory Pathways
Key facts
- Where
- Pittsburgh, United StatesSee the site
Could this be for you?
Answer for yourself. This is not a decision: only the study team can say whether you can take part.
- Are you between 21 and 75 years old?
Source: NCT07401186, who can take part
Where in United States
- University of PittsburghPittsburgh, United StatesTaking people
Questions to ask the study team
- How often do I need to come in, and for how long each time?
- Are travel costs paid?
- Can I keep my own doctor?
- What happens if I want to stop?
Trial details
- Who runs it
- Peter C. Gerszten, MD
- Trial code
- NCT07401186
- Record updated
- 4 June 2026
- Original description
The goal of this study is to assess cervical (neck) reflexes by intra-operatively stimulating the neck nerve roots to evoke motor responses through their connections to spinal motoneurons. This data is critical to reveal changes to the spinal sensory modulating circuitry in neurological disorders like stroke.Read full original descriptionShow less
Stimulation Evoked Primary Afferent Depolarization to Modulate Sensory Transmission to Spinal Motoneurons and the Sensory Cortex
The goal of this study is to assess cervical (neck) reflexes by intra-operatively stimulating the neck nerve roots to evoke motor responses through their connections to spinal motoneurons. This data is critical to reveal changes to the spinal sensory modulating circuitry in neurological disorders like stroke.
Inclusion: All Subjects: Ages between 21 and 75 years. The minimum age is selected to age match control subjects with stroke subjects. In addition, participants outside this age range may be at an increased medical risk; Control subjects: Patients undergoing elective posterior cervical spinal surgery that includes a decompressive laminectomy, and who will have electrophysiological monitoring performed as part of the standard of care for their procedure; Stroke subjects: Participants must have a suffered a single, ischemic or hemorrhagic stroke more than 6 months prior to the time of enrollment with hemiparesis as a result, is undergoing a cervical epidural lead implant or undergoing elective posterior cervical spinal surgery that includes a decompressive laminectomy with electrophysiological monitoring performed as part of the standard of care.
Exclusion: Participants must not be on anti-spasticity or anti-epileptic medications; Patients will be excluded from the study if they have any known neurological diseases other than stroke, such as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, spinal muscular atrophy, spinal cord injury, autoimmune neuropathy, or sensory nerve disorders, that may affect the integrity of cervical sensory afferents; Only patients that are eligible for surgery will be enrolled. Therefore this automatically include as exclusion criteria: pregnancy and other clinical conditions eligible for surgery.