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SeizuresNCT00884351

Magnetoencephalography in Absence Seizures

An observational study of Seizures, 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

Background: An absence seizure is a type of seizure that usually begins in childhood and goes away by early adulthood. Scientists do not yet know where absence seizures begin in the brain. Read more about this study

Who is it for?
Ages 7 to 35 years
Conditions the study is for
Seizures
How many people
5 participants
Where
1 siteUnited States
Study dates
15 Apr 2009to 15 Jun 2011
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 7 to 35 years
  • All sexes
  • No healthy volunteers
  • Child, Adult

Who may be able to join

  • Age 7-35
  • Absence of seizures based on clinical and electroenecephalography data. Patients who have other seizure types (myoclonic, generalized tonic-clonic) in addition to absence seizures may be included.
  • Patients who have other neurologic disorders may be included, as long as they are able to consent/assent.

Who cannot join

  • Contraindications to MEG studies (Dental braces, permanent retainers, metal dental caps/crowns/fillings)
  • Contraindications to MRI studies (such as pacemakers, cochlear devices, surgical clips, metallic implants, orthopedic pins, shrapnel, permanent eyeliner, vagus nerve stimulator)
  • Claustrophobia or anxiety disorders exacerbated by MRI
  • Pregnancy
  • Inability to provide consent/assent

Trial locations and contacts

1 site in 1 country.

United States1 site
  • National Institutes of Health Clinical Center, 9000 Rockville Pike

    Bethesda, Maryland, 20892

Other trials in United States

About this study

Background:

  • An absence seizure is a type of seizure that usually begins in childhood and goes away by early adulthood. Scientists do not yet know where absence seizures begin in the brain. Some evidence suggests that these seizures begin in the thalamus, a structure deep in the brain, but other studies suggest that they begin in the frontal cortex, at the front part of the brain.
  • Magnetoencephalography is a type of brain scanning procedure that is useful in determining information about what happens to the brain during epileptic seizures. Understanding where absence seizures come from may help doctors find new treatments for them.
Read more

Objectives:

  • To gain a better understanding of which parts of the brain are affected in absence seizures.

Eligibility:

  • Patients 7 to 35 years of age who have been diagnosed with absence seizures.

Design:

  • Procedures are for research purposes only, not to diagnose or treat a particular medical condition.
  • Two outpatient visits to the National Institutes of Health Clinical Center: evaluation and scanning.
  • Researchers will evaluate potential participants with a medical history, physical examination, and electroencephalography (EEG). These tests will be performed under another protocol, 01-N-0139.
  • Patients will undergo magnetoencephalography (MEG) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of the brain. The study procedures will be performed one time; however, an MEG or MRI scan may need to be repeated for technical reasons. Researchers will not do more than two MEG or MRI scans.
  • The MEG will record very small magnetic field changes produced by the activity of the brain. An EEG will be recorded at the same time as the MEG.
  • The MRI will use a magnetic field to take pictures of the inside of the brain.
  • The MEG will take 3 hours to complete (2 hours for preparation, 1 hour in the scanner). The MRI will take approximately 1 hour.
Read the detailed description

Objective:

This protocol will test the hypothesis that the 3-Hz spike-wave discharges seen in absence epilepsy originate in the thalamus. We will use an emerging modality, magnetoencephalograpy (MEG), to test this hypothesis.

Study Population:

33 patients with absence seizures.

Design:

This is a non-invasive imaging study that involves a 275-channel whole head MEG recording and a structural MRI for co-registration of MEG data.

Outcome Measure:

The primary outcome measure is the source localization of spike-wave discharges on magnetoencephalography.

Conditions
Seizures
Keywords
Epilepsy, MEG, Seizures
Medical subject headings
Seizures, Epilepsy

Timeline

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

  1. First posted20 Apr 2009 (estimated)
  2. Study start15 Apr 2009
  3. Study completion15 Jun 2011

Resources

More details

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

Study design
Study type
Observational
Time perspective
Prospective
Enrolment
5 participants (actual)
IDs, dates and publications
ClinicalTrials.gov ID
NCT00884351
Sponsor's protocol ID
090125
Other IDs
09-N-0125
Status last verified
15 Jun 2011
First submitted
17 Apr 2009
Last updated
2 Jul 2017
Results posted
No

Publications

  • Avoli M, Gloor P. Role of the thalamus in generalized penicillin epilepsy: observations on decorticated cats. Exp Neurol. 1982 Aug;77(2):386-402. doi: 10.1016/0014-4886(82)90252-7. No abstract available.

    PubMed 7095066
  • Bernasconi A, Bernasconi N, Natsume J, Antel SB, Andermann F, Arnold DL. Magnetic resonance spectroscopy and imaging of the thalamus in idiopathic generalized epilepsy. Brain. 2003 Nov;126(Pt 11):2447-54. doi: 10.1093/brain/awg249. Epub 2003 Aug 5.

    PubMed 12902313
  • Castro-Alamancos MA. Neocortical synchronized oscillations induced by thalamic disinhibition in vivo. J Neurosci. 1999 Sep 15;19(18):RC27. doi: 10.1523/JNEUROSCI.19-18-j0005.1999.

    PubMed 10479720

Questions about this trial

What is this clinical trial studying?

An observational study of Seizures, 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 3 inclusion and 5 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 Jul 2017. 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 NCT00884351, 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 2 Jul 2017.

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