NCT07592247Not yet recruiting
Potential for Recovery of Voluntary Finger Extension After Stroke
Source: ClinicalTrials.gov · Last updated 18 May 2026
Brief summary (registry, in English)
Stroke patients with absent voluntary finger extension (VFE) 6-months after stroke are not expected to recover hand function. However, experience from the Queen Square Upper Limb neurorehabilitation service contradicts this view. In this study, we will identify the characteristics of those chronic stroke patients who regain previously absent VFE. Hundred chronic stroke patients will be recruited with absent/negligible VFE in an external pilot and feasibility study. Transcranial magnetic stimulation will be used to determine the functional integrity of descending white matter pathways. Corticospinal tract integrity to finger extensor muscles will be based on whether motor-evoked potentials are present (MEP+) or absent (MEP-). Reticulospinal tract activity will be assessed by measuring ipsilateral MEP amplitudes and the Start-React response. All patients will then receive 3-months of neuromuscular electrical stimulation plus home exercise, designed to strengthen wrist/finger extensors, reduce spasticity and increase corticospinal excitability. The primary outcome measure will be restoration of VFE. It is predicted that VFE will be restored in MEP+ but not MEP- patients. MEP- patients will have higher reticulospinal tract activity associated with spasticity. Restoration of VFE will allow patients to engage in evidence-based upper limb training to improve function e.g. constraint induced movement therapy or repetitive task training.
- Status (registry)
- Not yet recruiting
- Study type
- Interventional
- Enrollment
- 100 (estimated)
- First submitted
- 24 Apr 2026
- Start date
- 1 Sept 2026
- Primary completion date
- 1 Jun 2029
- Lead sponsor
- University College, London
- Diseases
- Stroke
- NCT number
- NCT07592247
What you commit to
- Study type: Interventional
- Planned participants: 100
- From 1 Sept 2026 to the primary completion date, 1 Jun 2029
- 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
- Botulinum toxin to long finger or wrist flexors \< 24 weeks prior to pre-treatment assessment (i.e. effects should have worn off).
Other
- Presence of spasticity in any wrist/finger flexors (including lumbricals) \>2 on Modified Ashworth Scale
- Unable to get hand flat on table top
Who the study is looking for
- Diagnosed with a Stroke \>6 months previously
- Medical Research Council (MRC) grade 0 or 1 in long finger extensors.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| University College London- Department of Clinical and Movement Neurosciences Coordinator of this site? Confirm its status | London | United Kingdom | Unknown status |
This page is information, not medical advice. Discuss any trial with your doctor.