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AmputationNCT00028210

Enhanced Tactile (Touch) Spatial Acuity in Upper Limb Amputees

An observational study of Amputation, run by National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) at 1 site in United States.

Completed

Finished. The study has ended and is not enrolling. Results may be posted on the official record.

Official record
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Trial summary

This study will examine whether tactile (touch) abilities at the lip are more acute in people with upper limb amputation compared with healthy normal volunteers. People with an amputated upper limb have an expanded brain representation of the lip that may correlate with heightened tactile spatial acuity. Read more about this study

Who is it for?
Any ageHealthy volunteers can take part
Conditions the study is for
Amputation
How many people
60 participants
Where
1 siteUnited States
Study dates
Dec 2001to Mar 2004
Phase
Observational
Are there results?
None posted in the registry

Key requirements

Who can take part, as listed by the sponsor. Only the study team can confirm whether you are eligible, so take this list to your doctor.

  • Ages Any age
  • All sexes
  • Healthy volunteers accepted
  • Child, Adult, Older adult

Who may be able to join

  • Normal volunteers who are willing and able to stay relaxed and collaborative for a period of up to 2 hours.
  • Subjects with upper limb amputation more than one year before testing.

Who cannot join

  • Neurological or psychiatric disease
  • Excessive callus at the palm of the fingers
  • Subjects, who are unable to perform or understand the task

Trial locations and contacts

1 site in 1 country.

United States1 site
  • National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS)

    Bethesda, Maryland, 20892

Other trials in United States

About this study

Official title: Enhancement of Tactile Spatial Acuity in Upper Limb Amputees

This study will examine whether tactile (touch) abilities at the lip are more acute in people with upper limb amputation compared with healthy normal volunteers. People with an amputated upper limb have an expanded brain representation of the lip that may correlate with heightened tactile spatial acuity.

Normal volunteers will be recruited for this study. Candidates will be screened with physical and neurological examinations. (Amputee volunteers will be studied at the amputee clinic at the University of Tubingen, Germany.)

Read more

Participants will sit comfortably in a chair, wearing a blindfold, during the following experiments:

  • Plastic domes with grooves are placed on parts of the lower lip on either side for a few seconds. The volunteer is then asked to identify the direction of the grooves relative to the long axis of the lip.
  • The participant's arm is placed in a cast and the index finger is immobilized. The same test done on the lip is repeated on the distal part of the index finger.

Each part of the test lasts about 20 minutes, and the entire experiment takes about 2 hours.

Read the detailed description

Upper limb amputation leads to expansion of the cortical representation of the lip into the adjacent deafferented hand representation. It is conceivable that this enlargement of the lip representation may translate into a behavioral gain. The purpose of this protocol is to test the hypothesis that upper limb amputation in humans results in higher tactile spatial acuity at the lip. This would represent the first demonstration of chronic deafferentation-induced behavioral gains within the somatosensory system.

Conditions
Amputation
Keywords
Amputee, Plasticity, Somatosensory, Upper Limb Amputation, Tactile Performance, Cortical Reorganization, Healthy Volunteer, HV, Normal Control

Timeline

From the start of the study to its completion; the mark is today. Estimated dates are the sponsor’s plan.

  1. First posted18 Dec 2001 (estimated)
  2. Study startDec 2001
  3. Study completionMar 2004

Resources

More details

For doctors and researchers: how the study is designed, who runs it, and its registry IDs.

Study design
Study type
Observational
Enrolment
60 participants
IDs, dates and publications
ClinicalTrials.gov ID
NCT00028210
Sponsor's protocol ID
020067
Other IDs
02-N-0067
Status last verified
Mar 2004
First submitted
17 Dec 2001
Last updated
4 Mar 2008
Results posted
No

Publications

  • Elbert T, Flor H, Birbaumer N, Knecht S, Hampson S, Larbig W, Taub E. Extensive reorganization of the somatosensory cortex in adult humans after nervous system injury. Neuroreport. 1994 Dec 20;5(18):2593-7. doi: 10.1097/00001756-199412000-00047.

    PubMed 7696611
  • Flor H, Elbert T, Knecht S, Wienbruch C, Pantev C, Birbaumer N, Larbig W, Taub E. Phantom-limb pain as a perceptual correlate of cortical reorganization following arm amputation. Nature. 1995 Jun 8;375(6531):482-4. doi: 10.1038/375482a0.

    PubMed 7777055
  • Kaas JH, Merzenich MM, Killackey HP. The reorganization of somatosensory cortex following peripheral nerve damage in adult and developing mammals. Annu Rev Neurosci. 1983;6:325-56. doi: 10.1146/annurev.ne.06.030183.001545. No abstract available.

    PubMed 6340591

Questions about this trial

What is this clinical trial studying?

An observational study of Amputation, run by National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) at 1 site in United States.

The full registered description is in the About this study section and the official record.

Who may be eligible to take part?

The sponsor lists 2 inclusion and 3 exclusion criteria. Eligibility is decided by the study team after screening, so read the full criteria and contact a listed site.

Is this clinical trial currently recruiting?

The record says: finished, as of the sponsor's last update on 4 Mar 2008. Status can change between updates, so confirm with the study contact before making plans.

Where is the study taking place?

The record lists 1 site in United States. Whether a site is taking part right now should be confirmed with that site. See every site.

What are the possible benefits and risks?

They depend on the study and the treatment, and no study can promise a benefit. The study team explains the known risks during informed consent, before anyone joins; the record itself does not list them.

Are results available for this study?

The study is completed, but results are not available in the source record. That does not mean the treatment did or did not work.

How can a doctor refer a patient or contact the research team?

The record lists no contact. The official record names the sponsor, who can be asked directly. AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals.

Where can I read the original study information?

On the ClinicalTrials.gov record for NCT00028210, which also lists 3 linked publications.

Does a listing mean the treatment is approved or proven to work?

No. A listing means the study is registered. It does not show that the treatment is safe, works, or is approved by a regulator.

How often is this information updated?

AzTrials copies changed records from ClinicalTrials.gov every night and reloads the whole registry every week. The sponsor last updated this record on 4 Mar 2008.

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