Home › Stroke › NCT07887880

A Novel Multimodal Approach to Promote Motor Recovery and Plasticity After Stroke

Who can join

Ages 40 to 85 · All sexes

Inclusion Criteria:

Female and male subjects are eligible for inclusion only if all of the following criteria are met:

1. Age between 40-85 years
2. Diagnosis of first-ever subcortical stroke (single cerebrovascular accident)
3. Stroke onset of at least six months prior to the time of participation
4. Limited functional wrist and finger flexion and extension, as indicated between 5º-20º active movement
5. Cognitive skills to actively participate, as indicated by scores of ≥ 24 on the Mini-Mental Status Examina-tion
6. English speaking

Exclusion Criteria:

A subject is not eligible for inclusion if any of the following criteria apply:

1. Presence of severe aphasia preventing the ability to follow 1-step directions at least 80% of the time
2. Excessive spasticity of the wrist and finger muscles, defined as a Modified Ashworth Score \>2
3. Diagnosis of neurological disorders other than stroke
4. History of recent seizure or epilepsy while taking anticonvulsants
5. Orthopedic/musculoskeletal conditions (e.g., arthritis) affecting the upper extremity
6. Presence of metallic implants in the head or neck
7. Currently or planning to become pregnant
8. Difficulty maintaining alertness or remaining still
9. Ferromagnetic metallic implants, pacemakers, other implanted devices, or ventilators (for MRI)
10. Bodyweight \> 300 lbs due to MRI scanner dimensions (for subjects also undergoing MRI)
11. Psychiatric diagnosis according to the criteria of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorder, Fifth Edition (DSM-V), or who are on psychotropic medication
12. Participation in concurrent occupational therapy

About the study

Upper extremity (UE) paresis or weakness is one of the most frequent impairments after stroke. Despite intense rehabilitation, motor and functional recovery of patients with severe hand impairments is poor. Hence, there is a need for more effective treatments to enhance motor function in patients with severe hand impairments after stroke. Adaptive functional electrical stimulation (FES) appears to be a promising treatment and has the potential to facilitate active movement in individuals with severe impairments post-stroke. In addition, transcranial random noise stimulation (trns) is a widely studied, non-invasive and safe method to enhance the corticomotor excitability in individuals with chronic stroke. However, the effect of combining trns and adaptive FES in patients with severe hand impairments has not been investigated. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to investigate whether combining trns with FES will enhance hand function in individuals with chronic stroke than FES alone. The investigators predict that combining trns with FES will significantly enhance hand function than FES alone.

What is being tested

• tRNS (Transcranial Random Noise Stimulation) (device)
• FES (Functional Electrical Stimulation)-assisted task-specific practice (device)
• Sham-tRNS (Transcranial Random Noise Stimulation) (device)

Sponsor: University of Utah · Participants: 78 · Started: Nov 11, 2026

Contact the study team

Official record on ClinicalTrials.gov — NCT07887880

Locations in the U.S.

Conditions

• Stroke

From ClinicalTrials.gov, data retrieved Nov 15, 2026. Each study sets its own eligibility; the study team decides who can join.