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Attention Deficit Disorder With HyperactivityPhase 2NCT02323633

Phase IIa Exploratory Clinical Trial, to Examine the Safety and Efficacy of tPCS on Paediatric ADHD Participants

A Phase 2 study testing Braingear Brainbuds Pulsed Current stimulation device in people with Attention Deficit Disorder With Hyperactivity, run by Braingear Technologies GmbH.

Unknown status

Status not confirmed. The sponsor has not verified this record for over two years, so it may be out of date.

Official record
Search all trials

Trial summary

Children with ADHD display a certain brainwave profile which might be different to that of a child who does not have ADHD. Treatment with tPCS (transcranial pulsed current stimulation) has shown that this brainwave profile could possibly be altered to more closely resemble a brainwave profile of a child who does not… Read more about this study

Who is it for?
Ages 6 to 12 years
What is being tested?
Braingear Brainbuds Pulsed Current stimulation device
Type of treatment
Medical device
Could I receive a placebo?
Yes, some participants may receive a placebo
How many people
48 participants
Where
No sites listed yet
Study dates
Jan 2015to Oct 2015
Phase
Phase 2
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 6 to 12 years
  • All sexes
  • No healthy volunteers
  • Child

Who may be able to join

  • Completion of the written informed consent process for trial participation, by parent(s) or legal guardian(s), prior to all trial-related procedures
  • Completion of written assent for trial participation, by participant, prior to all trial-related procedures
  • Male or female participants aged 6 to 12 years
  • Newly diagnosed (Diagnosis made by DSM-V criteria), treatment naïve participants
  • Participants and parent(s) or legal guardian(s) must have the ability to communicate well with the investigator and to understand and comply with the requirements of the trial
  • Participants and parent(s) or legal guardian(s) must agree to stay in contact with the trial site for the duration of the trial and provide updated contact information as necessary.

Who cannot join

  • Existence of a major neurologic or psychiatric condition (epilepsy, severe depression etc.)
  • History of head injury resulting in more than a momentary loss of consciousness
  • Previous neurosurgery
  • Presence of unstable medical conditions, such as: Diabetes Mellitus, Cardiac Pathology, Cancer, Kidney Insufficiency, Acute Thrombosis
  • Presence of any implanted metal or electronic medical devices present in the head, excluding any dental implants
  • Subjects on any prohibited concomitant medication
  • Any other medical condition which, in the opinion of the Investigator, could affect the participant's health during trial participation or could compromise his/her ability to participate in the trial
  • In the opinion of the investigator, the participant and his/her parent(s) or legal guardian(s) is not reliable for participation in the trial

Trial locations and contacts

No sites are listed yet.

Maresa Kotze, Hon Genetics contact

72-602-6720 ext. +27

maresa.kotze@cytespace.com

About this study

Official title: A Single-blind, Randomised, Sham Controlled, Phase IIa Exploratory Clinical Trial, to Examine the Safety and Efficacy of BGX-3006 (tPCS) on Paediatric ADHD Participants.

Children with ADHD display a certain brainwave profile which might be different to that of a child who does not have ADHD. Treatment with tPCS (transcranial pulsed current stimulation) has shown that this brainwave profile could possibly be altered to more closely resemble a brainwave profile of a child who does not have ADHD. Researchers believe that by changing this brainwave profile it might lessen symptoms of ADHD.

tPCS is a name used to describe the type of current this device produces. It involves randomly (in no specific pattern) produced pulses of current at different times that the brain picks up. These pulses of low current stimulate the brain in a certain way and affect the brainwave activity.

Read more

Treatment is given by applying a low frequency current using small electrodes clipped to the earlobes. The current comes from an external battery source. The pulses of current generated by this device stimulate certain parts of the brain which result in a possible increased control of attention and behaviour. This treatment has already been proven to be safe and will not hurt your child.

Due to these specific parts of the brain being stimulated, and the positive results of previous research, it seems possible to control certain functions in children suffering from inattention and hyperactivity.

The idea of using tPCS stimulation as a possible way for helping children with confirmed ADHD opens a new window to future research. The final goal of this device and research is to offer a safe, non-invasive (conservative treatment that does not require piercing into the body or the removal of tissue) treatment that can be used on a long-term basis and shows a clear improvement of ADHD symptoms for children and even adults with ADHD.

Read the detailed description
  • Inspection of Records: Investigators and institutions involved in the trial will permit trial-related monitoring, audits, Independent Ethics Committee (IEC) review, and regulatory inspection(s) by providing direct access to all trial records. In the event of an audit, the investigator agrees to allow the sponsor, representatives of the sponsor and applicable regulatory authorities access to all trial records. The confidentiality of records that can identify participants will be protected, respecting the privacy and confidentiality rules in accordance with regulatory requirements.

The investigator must promptly notify the sponsor of any audits scheduled by any regulatory authorities and promptly forward copies of any audit reports received to the sponsor.

In order to ensure data accuracy, data for individual participant visits must be completed as soon as possible/ during/ immediately following the visit. All completed data will be reviewed, signed, and dated by the investigator in a timely manner.

  • Database Management and Quality Control: Data management, including the development and management of a database, will be performed in accordance with regulatory requirements. The designated data management vendor will review the CRF data for completeness and accuracy. A formal querying process will be followed whereby the data management group will request the site personnel to clarify any apparent erroneous entries or inconsistencies and will request additional information from the site as required.

Medical history/current medical conditions and adverse events will be coded using the Medical dictionary for regulatory activities (MedDRA) terminology.

  • Sample Size: As this research is exploratory in nature a sample size was calculated based on some assumptions as there is no current data to compare in pediatrics, tPCS, and ADHD. Since no preliminary data is available a clinically relevant improvement is regarded as a 15% shift on the total range of the two ADHD sub-scales (Inattention and Hyperactivity/Impulsivity), with 9 items in each, i.e. 4.05 (=0.15 x 27 where items score 0 to 3 Likert scale). The standard deviation is estimated as range/6 = 27/6 = 4.5, i.e. the total range of a Gaussian distribution was 6 standard deviation. A sampling ratio of 2:1 is used. A sample size of 48 children (32:16) will have 80% power to detect a difference of 4.05 points between the groups when testing two-sided using Students t-test at the 0.05 level of significance.

Continuous data will be summarised using descriptive statistics. Categorical data will be presented using N and % (using the number of participants without missing data in the calculation). 95% confidence intervals will be determined for all data, where applicable. No imputation of missing values will be performed in the calculation of summary statistics.

  • Safety Data Analysis: The safety analyses will be performed for the safety population only. All safety parameters (adverse events, physical examination findings, vital signs, physical measurements and qEEG findings) will be summarised descriptively by treatment group. The descriptive statistics will include the number of observations, mean, standard deviation, median, minimum and maximum for continuous variables and number of observations and their percentages for categorical variables. Changes from baseline as well as shift tables will be provided for the safety laboratory parameters (within, below or above normal range).

The analysis of adverse events will include all treatment emergent adverse events. Adverse events will be coded using MedDRA and will be presented by system organ class and preferred term for each treatment group.

  • Efficacy Data
  1. Primary Efficacy analysis: The mean change in both the Inattention and Hyperactivity-Impulsive subscales of the SNAP-IV-C rating scale as well as the Conners'3 Parent rating scale from baseline to Day 42 will be calculated for each group. Mean changes from baseline at the other trial time points (Days 0, 14, 28, and 42) will also be calculated. The statistical analysis methods will consist of paired t-tests within groups and analysis of Co-variance (ANCOVA) between groups for the change in assessments over time. The paired t-tests will compare the change variable from before tPCS administration to after tPCS within groups (active and sham condition). A one-way ANCOVA, with factor groups (active or sham) and co-variance baseline value, will be employed to compare groups with respect to change from baseline for estimated outcomes, e.g. change in complete scores from baseline to 6-weeks for inattentive and hyperactivity-impulsivity on SNAP-IV-C and Conners'3 Parent rating scales. Groups will also be compared over time (Days 0, 14, 28 and 42) using a linear mixed model analysis and of particular interest will be the interaction between group and time.
  2. Secondary Efficacy analysis:

The mean change in the psychometric test-battery from baseline to Day 42 will be calculated for each group. Mean changes from baseline at the other trial time points (Days 0, 14, 28, and 42) will also be calculated.

The statistical analysis methods will consist of paired t-tests within groups and analysis of Co-variance (ANCOVA) between groups for the change in assessments over time. The paired t-tests will compare the change variable from before tPCS administration to after tPCS within groups (active and sham condition). A one-way ANCOVA, with factor groups (active or sham) and co-variance baseline value, will be employed to compare groups with respect to change from baseline for estimated outcomes, e.g. change in complete scores from baseline to 6-weeks for the psychometric test-battery. Groups will also be compared over time (Days 0, 14, 28 and 42) using a linear mixed model analysis for repeated measures and of particular interest will be the interaction between group and time.

EEG analysis Power spectra will be determined for each epoch of data for the frequency-domain analysis. Mean and median power frequencies will be calculated within each of the 4 EEG frequency bands (intraband) and over the entire EEG range (interband). Also, the band power fractions or relative amount of power within an EEG band with respect to the total amount of spectrum power will be determined. The coherence analysis will be completed using two bands (alpha and theta) and four sub-bands (low-alpha (8-10 Hz), high-alpha (10-12 Hz), low-beta (12-20 Hz), and high-beta (20-30 Hz)). We will use the Welch's averaged modified periodogram method to find the estimated coherence of signal x and y, representing each electrode site. It is a function of the power spectral densities of x and y and their cross power spectral density. Groups will also be compared over time (Days 0, 42 and 84) using a linear mixed model analysis for repeated measures and of particular interest will be the interaction between group and time.

Being tested
Braingear Brainbuds Pulsed Current stimulation device, Sham
Keywords
Pediatric Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder
Medical subject headings
Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity

What participants receive

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

  • Braingear Brainbuds Pulsed Current stimulation deviceDevice

    Transcranial Pulsed Current stimulation (tPCS) at random noise oscillating frequencies for a duration of 20 minutues

  • ShamDevice

    Also called Braingear Brainbuds Pulsed Current stimulation device

    No transcranial Pulsed Current Stimulation (tPCS)

Study groups in NCT02323633
Study groupRoleWhat they receive
tPCS groupActive comparatorArm in which random noise oscillating frequencies will be produced for the duration of 20 minutes.
Receives: Device: Braingear Brainbuds Pulsed Current stimulation device
Sham groupSham comparatorArm in which no random noise oscillating frequencies will be produced for the duration of 20 minutes
Receives: Device: Sham

What is being measured

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

  1. The primary efficacy objective will be measured by the change in scores from baseline to Day 42 in both the SNAP-IV-C and Connors'3 Parent Rating Scales

    Measured: 42 days

  2. Safety and tolerability will be measured by the incidence and severity of adverse events and changes in physical examination findings, vital signs and qEEG findings.

    Measured: 42 days

Secondary outcomes (2)
  1. The secondary efficacy objective will be measured by the change in scores from baseline to day 42 in the psychometric analysis conducted by the psychometrist

    Measured: 42 days

  2. The change from baseline to day 42 in the electrophysiological observations of a qEEG.

    Measured: 42 days

Timeline

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

  1. First posted23 Dec 2014 (estimated)
  2. Study startJan 2015
  3. Primary completionJun 2015 (estimated)
  4. Study completionOct 2015 (estimated)

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 2
Primary purpose
Treatment
Allocation
Randomised
Intervention model
Parallel groups
Masking
Single blind
Who is masked
Participant
Enrolment
48 participants (estimated)
IDs, dates and publications
ClinicalTrials.gov ID
NCT02323633
Sponsor's protocol ID
BGX-3006
Status last verified
Dec 2014
First submitted
18 Dec 2014
Last updated
23 Dec 2014
Results posted
No
Data monitoring committee
Yes

Publications

  • Aosaki T, Graybiel AM, Kimura M. Effect of the nigrostriatal dopamine system on acquired neural responses in the striatum of behaving monkeys. Science. 1994 Jul 15;265(5170):412-5. doi: 10.1126/science.8023166.

    PubMed 8023166
  • Zaghi S, Acar M, Hultgren B, Boggio PS, Fregni F. Noninvasive brain stimulation with low-intensity electrical currents: putative mechanisms of action for direct and alternating current stimulation. Neuroscientist. 2010 Jun;16(3):285-307. doi: 10.1177/1073858409336227. Epub 2009 Dec 29.

    PubMed 20040569
  • Wilens T, Pelham W, Stein M, Conners CK, Abikoff H, Atkins M, August G, Greenhill L, McBurnett K, Palumbo D, Swanson J, Wolraich M. ADHD treatment with once-daily OROS methylphenidate: interim 12-month results from a long-term open-label study. J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry. 2003 Apr;42(4):424-33. doi: 10.1097/01.CHI.0000046814.95464.7D.

    PubMed 12649629
  • Stergiakouli E, Thapar A. Fitting the pieces together: current research on the genetic basis of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Neuropsychiatr Dis Treat. 2010 Sep 7;6:551-60. doi: 10.2147/NDT.S11322.

    PubMed 20856918
  • Sprich S, Biederman J, Crawford MH, Mundy E, Faraone SV. Adoptive and biological families of children and adolescents with ADHD. J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry. 2000 Nov;39(11):1432-7. doi: 10.1097/00004583-200011000-00018.

    PubMed 11068899
  • Shealy YF. Synthesis and evaluation of some new retinoids for cancer chemoprevention. Prev Med. 1989 Sep;18(5):624-45. doi: 10.1016/0091-7435(89)90034-0.

    PubMed 2694159
  • Voeller KK. Attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). J Child Neurol. 2004 Oct;19(10):798-814. doi: 10.1177/08830738040190100901.

    PubMed 15559895
  • Goodman R, Stevenson J. A twin study of hyperactivity--II. The aetiological role of genes, family relationships and perinatal adversity. J Child Psychol Psychiatry. 1989 Sep;30(5):691-709. doi: 10.1111/j.1469-7610.1989.tb00782.x.

    PubMed 2793957
  • Polania R, Nitsche MA, Korman C, Batsikadze G, Paulus W. The importance of timing in segregated theta phase-coupling for cognitive performance. Curr Biol. 2012 Jul 24;22(14):1314-8. doi: 10.1016/j.cub.2012.05.021. Epub 2012 Jun 7.

    PubMed 22683259
  • Loe IM, Feldman HM. Academic and educational outcomes of children with ADHD. J Pediatr Psychol. 2007 Jul;32(6):643-54. doi: 10.1093/jpepsy/jsl054. Epub 2007 Jun 14.

    PubMed 17569716
  • Biederman J, Spencer T. Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) as a noradrenergic disorder. Biol Psychiatry. 1999 Nov 1;46(9):1234-42. doi: 10.1016/s0006-3223(99)00192-4.

    PubMed 10560028
  • Brook U, Boaz M. Adolescents with attention deficit and hyperactivity disorder/learning disability and their proneness to accidents. Indian J Pediatr. 2006 Apr;73(4):299-303. doi: 10.1007/BF02825823.

    PubMed 16816490
  • Datta A, Dmochowski JP, Guleyupoglu B, Bikson M, Fregni F. Cranial electrotherapy stimulation and transcranial pulsed current stimulation: a computer based high-resolution modeling study. Neuroimage. 2013 Jan 15;65:280-7. doi: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2012.09.062. Epub 2012 Oct 5.

    PubMed 23041337
  • Edelmuth RC, Nitsche MA, Battistella L, Fregni F. Why do some promising brain-stimulation devices fail the next steps of clinical development? Expert Rev Med Devices. 2010 Jan;7(1):67-97. doi: 10.1586/erd.09.64.

    PubMed 20021241
  • Arnsten AF, Steere JC, Hunt RD. The contribution of alpha 2-noradrenergic mechanisms of prefrontal cortical cognitive function. Potential significance for attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder. Arch Gen Psychiatry. 1996 May;53(5):448-55. doi: 10.1001/archpsyc.1996.01830050084013.

    PubMed 8624188

Questions about this trial

What is this clinical trial studying?

A Phase 2 study testing Braingear Brainbuds Pulsed Current stimulation device in people with Attention Deficit Disorder With Hyperactivity, run by Braingear Technologies GmbH.

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 6 inclusion and 8 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: status not confirmed, as of the sponsor's last update on 23 Dec 2014. Status can change between updates, so confirm with the study contact before making plans.

What are the possible benefits and risks?

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

What does this phase mean?

Phase 2 studies give the treatment to a larger group to see whether it has the intended effect and to keep checking safety.

Not every study follows the same path, and some studies (observational studies, device studies) have no phase.

Are results available for this study?

Results are not available in the source record.

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

Contact Maresa Kotze, Hon Genetics (72-602-6720 ext. +27, maresa.kotze@cytespace.com), or a site near the patient. AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals.

What does the primary outcome measure?

The primary efficacy objective will be measured by the change in scores from baseline to Day 42 in both the SNAP-IV-C and Connors'3 Parent Rating Scales (time frame: 42 days). The study lists 2 primary outcomes in all. It is what the study was designed to measure, not a finding.

Where can I read the original study information?

On the ClinicalTrials.gov record for NCT02323633, which also lists 19 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 23 Dec 2014.

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