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Spinal Cord InjuriesNCT00589199

Functional Electrical Stimulation for Production of Artificial Cough

A study testing Placement and use of the device in people with Spinal Cord Injuries and Paralysis, run by MetroHealth Medical Center 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

The purpose of the present study is to assess the utility of abdominal muscle stimulation to provide large positive airway pressures and expiratory airflow thus simulating cough. Read more about this study

Who is it for?
Ages 18 to 65 years
Conditions the study is for
Spinal Cord Injuries, Paralysis
What is being tested?
Placement and use of the device
Type of treatment
Surgery or procedure
Could I receive a placebo?
No, everyone receives an active treatment
How many people
5 participants
Where
1 siteUnited States
Study dates
Dec 1993to Jan 2010
Phase
Interventional
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 18 to 65 years
  • All sexes
  • No healthy volunteers
  • Adult, Older adult

Who may be able to join

  • Patients with cervical or thoracic spinal cord injury

Who cannot join

  • Significant cardiovascular disease
  • Active lung disease
  • Pacemaker or other metallic implant
  • Legally incompetent

Trial locations and contacts

1 site in 1 country.

United States1 site
  • MetroHealth Medical Center

    Cleveland, Ohio, 44109

Other trials in United States

About this study

The purpose of the present study is to assess the utility of abdominal muscle stimulation to provide large positive airway pressures and expiratory airflow thus simulating cough. Restoration of cough in spinal cord injured patients may reduce the incidence of respiratory complications such as atelectasis, respiratory tract infections and respiratory failure.

Read the detailed description

Cough is a complex defensive respiratory reflex mechanism necessary for the clearance of respiratory secretions and foreign materials. In patients with chronic bronchitis, previous investigations have found that the cough mechanism is the most effective measure to enhance mucous clearance from the lung.

Patients with cervical and thoracic spinal cord injuries have suffered a loss of the major portion of their expiratory muscles. Consequently, they are unable to generate significant positive intrathoracic airway pressures or airflow and have a markedly increased risk of developing pulmonary infections. Mechanical methods have been developed to enhance cough production. However, these have resulted in only marginal increases in airway pressure.

Preliminary studies in our laboratory in animal experiments and those of others in humans have suggested that the abdominal muscles can be stimulated directly by surface electrodes. The purpose of the present study, therefore, is to assess the utility of abdominal muscle stimulation in quadriplegics and paraplegics to simulate cough. A range of stimulus parameters and electrode locations will be assessed to determine optimal stimulus paradigms. Airway pressure and expiratory airflow will be used as indices of cough effectiveness. If successful, abdominal muscle stimulation may be a useful tool to restore cough and hopefully reduce the incidence of respiratory complications such as atelectasis and infection in spinal cord injured patients.

Being tested
Placement and use of the device
Medical subject headings
Spinal Cord Injuries, Paralysis

What participants receive

What participants receive. In a randomised study each person is assigned to one group by chance.

  • Placement and use of the deviceProcedure or surgery

    Surface electrodes currently used for peripheral muscle stimulation by other groups will be applied to the abdominal wall and over the posterior lower thoracic rib cage. Between two and three pairs (anodic and cathodic) of electrodes will be used in combination to activate the expiratory muscles. Electrodes will be positioned at various points over the abdominal wall and the posterior thoracic rib cage to ascertain optimal placement for airway pressure and expiratory airflow generation. The electrical stimulators to be used (EMPI and NeuroMedic) are powered by 9-volt batteries. These stimulators are currently in clinical use to stimulate other skeletal muscles and are known to be quite safe.

Study groups in NCT00589199
Study groupRoleWhat they receive
1ExperimentalFunctional Electrical Stimulation for Production of Artificial Cough
Receives: Procedure: Placement and use of the device

What is being measured

The primary outcome is the main question the study is designed to answer.

  1. Measurements of airway pressure and expiratory flow rate to evaluate efficacy of cough

    Measured: one year

Secondary outcomes (1)
  1. Incidence of respiratory complications

    Measured: one year

Timeline

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

  1. First posted9 Jan 2008 (estimated)
  2. Study startDec 1993
  3. Primary completionJan 2010
  4. Study completionJan 2010

Resources

More details

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

Study design
Study type
Interventional
Phase
Phase N/A
Primary purpose
Treatment
Allocation
Not applicable
Intervention model
Single group
Masking
None (open label)
Enrolment
5 participants (actual)
IDs, dates and publications
ClinicalTrials.gov ID
NCT00589199
Sponsor's protocol ID
IRB93-00133
Status last verified
Jul 2019
First submitted
21 Dec 2007
Last updated
2 Aug 2019
Results posted
No
Data monitoring committee
No

Questions about this trial

What is this clinical trial studying?

A study testing Placement and use of the device in people with Spinal Cord Injuries and Paralysis, run by MetroHealth Medical Center 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 1 inclusion and 4 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 2 Aug 2019. 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.

What does the primary outcome measure?

Measurements of airway pressure and expiratory flow rate to evaluate efficacy of cough (time frame: one year). It is what the study was designed to measure, not a finding.

Where can I read the original study information?
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 2 Aug 2019.

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