Chronic StrokeNCT04154514
A Potential Wearable for Post-stroke Rehabilitation
A study testing A functional electrical stimulation device for post-stroke rehabilitation in people with Chronic Stroke, run by Chinese University of Hong Kong at 1 site in Hong Kong.
Trial summary
Participants are seeking to unleash the full therapeutic potential of a newly developed, customizable and potentially commericializable 10-channel Functional Electrical Stimulation (FES) to rehabilitate the gait of chronic stroke survivors. Each subject will undergo 18-sessions (~1 month) FES training. Read more about this study
- Who is it for?
- Ages 40 to 85 years
- Conditions the study is for
- Chronic Stroke
- What is being tested?
- A functional electrical stimulation device for post-stroke rehabilitation
- Type of treatment
- Medical device
- Could I receive a placebo?
- No, everyone receives an active treatment
- How many people
- 53 participants
- Where
- 1 siteHong Kong
- Study dates
- 1 Feb 2019to 1 Dec 2025
- 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 40 to 85 years
- All sexes
- No healthy volunteers
- Adult, Older adult
Who may be able to join
- Right-handed elderly chronic stroke survivors; age ≥40; ≥6 months post-stroke
- Unilateral ischemic brain lesions
- Participants should be able to walk continuously for ≥15 min. with or without assistive aid
Who cannot join
- Cannot comprehend and follow instructions, or with a score <21 on the mini-mental state exam;
- Have cardiac pacemaker;
- Have skin lesions at the locations where FES or EMG electrodes may be attached;
- Have major depression;
- Present with severe neglect
- Patients with type i and ii diabetes
Trial locations and contacts
1 site in 1 country.
Hong Kong1 site
The Hong Kong Polytechnic University
Hong Kong, Hong Kong, 852
About this study
Official title: A Wearable for Post-stroke Rehabilitative Multi-muscle Stimulation Inspired by the Natural Organization of Neuromuscular Control
Participants are seeking to unleash the full therapeutic potential of a newly developed, customizable and potentially commericializable 10-channel Functional Electrical Stimulation (FES) to rehabilitate the gait of chronic stroke survivors. Each subject will undergo 18-sessions (~1 month) FES training. Participants will utilize the theory of muscle synergies from motor neurosciences, which are defined as neural modules of motor control that coordinate the spatiotemporal activation patterns of multiple muscles, to guide our personal selections of muscles for FES. It is hypothesized that chronic stroke survivors will learn from FES stimulations, over several daily sessions, both by suppressing the original abnormal muscle synergies and by employing the normal muscle synergies as specified in the FES. It is also expected that the walk synergies of the paretic side of chronic stroke survivors should be more similar to healthy muscle synergies at the two post-training time points than before training.
Read the detailed description
Stroke is one of the leading causes of long-term adult disability worldwide. The impaired ability to walk post-stroke severely limits mobility and quality of life. Many recently-developed assistive technologies for gait rehabilitation are at present only marginally better at best than traditional therapies in their efficacies. There is an urgent need of novel, clinically viable, and effective gait rehabilitative strategies that can provide even better functional outcome for stroke survivors with diverse presentations.
Among the many new post-stroke interventions, functional electrical stimulation (FES) of muscles remains attractive. FES is a neural-rehabilitative technology that communicates control signals from an external device to the neuromuscular system. There is increasing recognition that rehabilitation paradigms should promote restitution of the patient's muscle coordination towards the normal pattern during training, and FES can achieve this goal when stimulations are applied to the set of muscles whose natural coordination is impaired. For this reason, FES is a very promising interventional strategy. Existing FES paradigms, however, have yielded ambiguous results in previous clinical trials, especially those for chronic survivors, likely because either stimulations were applied only to single or a few muscles, or the stimulation pattern did not mimic the natural muscle coordination pattern during gait. A multi-muscle FES, when applied to a larger functional set of muscles and driven by their natural coordination pattern, can guide muscle activations towards the normal pattern through neuroplasticity, thus restore impairment at the level of muscle-activation deficit.
The first aim of our project is to utilize a 8-channel FES wearable for delivering multi-muscle FES to muscles in the lower-limb muscles. Participants will attempt to rehabilitate the gait of chronic stroke survivors over 12 training sessions by delivering stimulations to multiple muscles, in their natural coordination pattern, using our wearable. As such, participants will utilize the theory of muscle synergy from motor neuroscience to guide our personalizable selections of muscles for FES. Muscle synergies are hypothesized neural modules of motor control that coordinate the spatiotemporal activation patterns of multiple muscles. Our customizable FES pattern for each stroke survivor will be constructed based on the normal muscle synergies that are absent in the stroke survivor's muscle pattern during walking. Since muscle synergies represent the natural motor-control units used by the nervous system, reinforcement of their activations through FES should lead to restoration of normal neuromuscular coordination, thus more natural post-training gait.
Our second aim is to evaluate the effectiveness of our FES paradigm by assessing the walk-muscle synergies in the paretic and non-paretic legs of the trained stroke survivors, before, after, and 1 month following our intervention. In doing so, participants hope to explore whether lower-limb muscle synergy can be a physiologically-based marker of motor impairment for stroke survivors.
If our muscle-synergy-based multi-muscle FES is indeed efficacious, our strategy will help many disabled chronic stroke survivors to regain mobility, thus living with a much higher quality of life in the decades to come. The clinical and societal impact of our research will be huge.
- Conditions
- Chronic Stroke
- Being tested
- A functional electrical stimulation device for post-stroke rehabilitation
What participants receive
What participants receive. In a randomised study each person is assigned to one group by chance.
A functional electrical stimulation device for post-stroke rehabilitationDevice
Most of the FDA-approved commercial FES devices deliver therapy that targets specific kinematic impairment in the step cycle (e.g., foot drop). Our device will be unique in that it can stimulate many muscles around multiple joints for a more comprehensive and naturalistic restoration of lower-limb motor functions.
| Study group | Role | What they receive |
|---|---|---|
| Delivering FES to stroke survivors | Experimental | In stroke survivors, normal and abnormal muscle synergies will also be determined from their walk EMGs. Our proposed FES intervention involves delivering stimulations to muscles with waveforms generated from the activations of all the normal synergies not observed in each stroke survivor. We are going to employ the wearable to deliver personalized muscle-synergy-based FES stimulations to multiple groups of leg muscles on the stroke-affected side of elderly chronic stroke survivors as they walk on a treadmill/overground for gait rehabilitation. We hypothesized that the subject will essentially be walking with his/her abnormal muscle pattern superimposed with the artificially introduced "normal" muscle pattern coming from FES. Receives: Device: A functional electrical stimulation device for post-stroke rehabilitation |
| Delivery no current FES to stroke survivors (Sham group) | Experimental | In stroke survivors, normal and abnormal muscle synergies will also be determined from their walk EMGs. Our proposed FES intervention involves delivering stimulations to muscles with waveforms generated from the activations of all the normal synergies not observed in each stroke survivor. Additionally, we are going to introduce a sham group. We are going to employ the wearable to multiple groups of leg muscles on the stroke-affected side of elderly chronic stroke survivors without any stimulation as they walk on a treadmill or overground for gait rehabilitation. The purpose of the sham group is to empirically validate the effectiveness of the FES wearable. Receives: Device: A functional electrical stimulation device for post-stroke rehabilitation |
What is being measured
The primary outcome is the main question the study is designed to answer.
Surface electromyographic signals from up to 14 muscles on the paretic and non-paretic side during gait.
To assess the muscle synergies, surface EMGs will be recorded from 14 muscles (tibialis anterior (TA), medical gastrocnemius (MG), soleus (SOL), vastus medialis (VM), rectus femoris (RF), hamstrings (HAM), adductor longus (AL), gluteus maximus (GM) lateral gastrocnemius (LG), vastus lateralis (VL), tensor fasciae latae (TFL), erector spinae (ES), external oblique (EO), and latissimus dorsi (LatDor)), using a wireless EMG system (Delsys; 2000 Hz). All electrodes will be securely attached to skin surface using double-sided and medical tapes.
Measured: The assessment will be performed at baseline
Surface electromyographic signals from up to 14 muscles on the paretic and non-paretic side during gait.
To assess the muscle synergies, surface EMGs will be recorded from 14 muscles (tibialis anterior (TA), medical gastrocnemius (MG), soleus (SOL), vastus medialis (VM), rectus femoris (RF), hamstrings (HAM), adductor longus (AL), gluteus maximus (GM) lateral gastrocnemius (LG), vastus lateralis (VL), tensor fasciae latae (TFL), erector spinae (ES), external oblique (EO), and latissimus dorsi (LatDor)), using a wireless EMG system (Delsys; 2000 Hz). All electrodes will be securely attached to skin surface using double-sided and medical tapes.
Measured: The assessment will be performed at 5.5 weeks
Surface electromyographic signals from up to 14 muscles on the paretic and non-paretic side during gait.
To assess the muscle synergies, surface EMGs will be recorded from 14 muscles (tibialis anterior (TA), medical gastrocnemius (MG), soleus (SOL), vastus medialis (VM), rectus femoris (RF), hamstrings (HAM), adductor longus (AL), gluteus maximus (GM) lateral gastrocnemius (LG), vastus lateralis (VL), tensor fasciae latae (TFL), erector spinae (ES), external oblique (EO), and latissimus dorsi (LatDor)), using a wireless EMG system (Delsys; 2000 Hz). All electrodes will be securely attached to skin surface using double-sided and medical tapes.
Measured: The assessment will be performed at 2.5 weeks
Secondary outcomes (12)
Gait kinemetics
During FES sessions, kinematic measurements will be provided by the wearable's IMUs. During sessions of motor-impairment assessments, we will capture more precise kinematics using a 10-camera motion capture system (VICON; 200 Hz). This system tracks the 3D positions of 40 markers placed on the legs and torso, and is equipped with suitable models for reconstructing bilateral angles of the hip, knee and ankle.
Measured: The assessment will be performed at baseline
Gait kinemetics
During FES sessions, kinematic measurements will be provided by the wearable's IMUs. During sessions of motor-impairment assessments, we will capture more precise kinematics using a 10-camera motion capture system (VICON; 200 Hz). This system tracks the 3D positions of 40 markers placed on the legs and torso, and is equipped with suitable models for reconstructing bilateral angles of the hip, knee and ankle.
Measured: The assessment will be performed at 5.5 weeks
Gait kinemetics
During FES sessions, kinematic measurements will be provided by the wearable's IMUs. During sessions of motor-impairment assessments, we will capture more precise kinematics using a 10-camera motion capture system (VICON; 200 Hz). This system tracks the 3D positions of 40 markers placed on the legs and torso, and is equipped with suitable models for reconstructing bilateral angles of the hip, knee and ankle.
Measured: The assessment will be performed at 2.5 weeks
Gait kinemetics
During FES sessions, kinematic measurements will be provided by the wearable's IMUs. During sessions of motor-impairment assessments, we will capture more precise kinematics using a 10-camera motion capture system (VICON; 200 Hz). This system tracks the 3D positions of 40 markers placed on the legs and torso, and is equipped with suitable models for reconstructing bilateral angles of the hip, knee and ankle.
Measured: The assessment will be performed at 4 weeks
Fugl-Meyer assessment score (lower-limb)
Lower-limb motor function assessment
Measured: The assessment will be performed at baseline
Fugl-Meyer assessment score (lower-limb)
Lower-limb motor function assessment
Measured: The assessment will be performed at 5.5 weeks
Fugl-Meyer assessment score (lower-limb)
Lower-limb motor function assessment
Measured: The assessment will be performed at 2.5 weeks
Fugl-Meyer assessment score (lower-limb)
Lower-limb motor function assessment
Measured: The assessment will be performed at 4 weeks
Mini-BEStest
Balance test
Measured: The assessment will be performed at baseline
Mini-BEStest
Balance test
Measured: The assessment will be performed at 5.5 weeks
Mini-BEStest
Balance test
Measured: The assessment will be performed at 2.5 weeks
Mini-BEStest
Balance test
Measured: The assessment will be performed at 4 weeks
Timeline
From the start of the study to its completion; the mark is today. Estimated dates are the sponsor’s plan.
- First posted6 Nov 2019
- Study start1 Feb 2019
- Primary completion1 Dec 2025
- Study completion1 Dec 2025
Resources
- Official record on ClinicalTrials.govThe registry entry this page is built from, with its full change history.
- Publications (61)Papers the sponsor has linked to this study.
- Other trials for Chronic StrokeStudies of the same condition, open and under way.
- More trials run by Chinese University of Hong KongThe sponsor's other registered studies.
- What the trial phases meanHow a treatment moves from first tests in people to approval.
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
- Non-randomised
- Intervention model
- Single group
- Masking
- None (open label)
- Enrolment
- 53 participants (actual)
Sponsor and investigators
- Lead sponsor
- Chinese University of Hong Kong
- Sponsor type
- University, hospital or other
- Collaborators
- The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, City University of Hong Kong, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine
- Responsible party
- Principal investigator, Cheung Chi Kwan Vincent, Chinese University of Hong Kong
IDs, dates and publications
- ClinicalTrials.gov ID
- NCT04154514
- Sponsor's protocol ID
- CREC_RIF_PROTOCOL version 01
- Status last verified
- Dec 2025
- First submitted
- 10 Oct 2019
- Last updated
- 26 Dec 2025
- Results posted
- No
- Data monitoring committee
- No
- FDA-regulated drug
- No
- FDA-regulated device
- No
- Individual data sharing
- Undecided
Publications
Perry J, Garrett M, Gronley JK, Mulroy SJ. Classification of walking handicap in the stroke population. Stroke. 1995 Jun;26(6):982-9. doi: 10.1161/01.str.26.6.982.
PubMed 7762050Krasovsky T, Levin MF. Review: toward a better understanding of coordination in healthy and poststroke gait. Neurorehabil Neural Repair. 2010 Mar-Apr;24(3):213-24. doi: 10.1177/1545968309348509. Epub 2009 Oct 12.
PubMed 19822722Kollen BJ, Lennon S, Lyons B, Wheatley-Smith L, Scheper M, Buurke JH, Halfens J, Geurts AC, Kwakkel G. The effectiveness of the Bobath concept in stroke rehabilitation: what is the evidence? Stroke. 2009 Apr;40(4):e89-97. doi: 10.1161/STROKEAHA.108.533828. Epub 2009 Jan 29.
PubMed 19182079Cho JE, Yoo JS, Kim KE, Cho ST, Jang WS, Cho KH, Lee WH. Systematic Review of Appropriate Robotic Intervention for Gait Function in Subacute Stroke Patients. Biomed Res Int. 2018 Feb 6;2018:4085298. doi: 10.1155/2018/4085298. eCollection 2018.
PubMed 29546057Peckham PH, Knutson JS. Functional electrical stimulation for neuromuscular applications. Annu Rev Biomed Eng. 2005;7:327-60. doi: 10.1146/annurev.bioeng.6.040803.140103.
PubMed 16004574Sheffler LR, Chae J. Neuromuscular electrical stimulation in neurorehabilitation. Muscle Nerve. 2007 May;35(5):562-90. doi: 10.1002/mus.20758.
PubMed 17299744LIBERSON WT, HOLMQUEST HJ, SCOT D, DOW M. Functional electrotherapy: stimulation of the peroneal nerve synchronized with the swing phase of the gait of hemiplegic patients. Arch Phys Med Rehabil. 1961 Feb;42:101-5. No abstract available.
PubMed 13761879Heller BW, Clarke AJ, Good TR, Healey TJ, Nair S, Pratt EJ, Reeves ML, van der Meulen JM, Barker AT. Automated setup of functional electrical stimulation for drop foot using a novel 64 channel prototype stimulator and electrode array: results from a gait-lab based study. Med Eng Phys. 2013 Jan;35(1):74-81. doi: 10.1016/j.medengphy.2012.03.012. Epub 2012 May 4.
PubMed 22559959Springer S, Vatine JJ, Wolf A, Laufer Y. The effects of dual-channel functional electrical stimulation on stance phase sagittal kinematics in patients with hemiparesis. J Electromyogr Kinesiol. 2013 Apr;23(2):476-82. doi: 10.1016/j.jelekin.2012.10.017. Epub 2012 Dec 8.
PubMed 23231828You G, Liang H, Yan T. Functional electrical stimulation early after stroke improves lower limb motor function and ability in activities of daily living. NeuroRehabilitation. 2014;35(3):381-9. doi: 10.3233/NRE-141129.
PubMed 25227538Daly JJ, Roenigk K, Holcomb J, Rogers JM, Butler K, Gansen J, McCabe J, Fredrickson E, Marsolais EB, Ruff RL. A randomized controlled trial of functional neuromuscular stimulation in chronic stroke subjects. Stroke. 2006 Jan;37(1):172-8. doi: 10.1161/01.STR.0000195129.95220.77. Epub 2005 Dec 1.
PubMed 16322492Alon G. Use of neuromuscular electrical stimulation in neureorehabilitation: a challenge to all. J Rehabil Res Dev. 2003 Nov-Dec;40(6):ix-xii. doi: 10.1682/jrrd.2003.11.0009. No abstract available.
PubMed 15077655Alon G, Levitt AF, McCarthy PA. Functional electrical stimulation enhancement of upper extremity functional recovery during stroke rehabilitation: a pilot study. Neurorehabil Neural Repair. 2007 May-Jun;21(3):207-15. doi: 10.1177/1545968306297871. Epub 2007 Mar 16.
PubMed 17369518Cauraugh JH, Kim SB. Chronic stroke motor recovery: duration of active neuromuscular stimulation. J Neurol Sci. 2003 Nov 15;215(1-2):13-9. doi: 10.1016/s0022-510x(03)00169-2.
PubMed 14568122Saltiel P, Wyler-Duda K, D'Avella A, Tresch MC, Bizzi E. Muscle synergies encoded within the spinal cord: evidence from focal intraspinal NMDA iontophoresis in the frog. J Neurophysiol. 2001 Feb;85(2):605-19. doi: 10.1152/jn.2001.85.2.605.
PubMed 11160497
Study at a glance
From the registry record, last updated by the sponsor on 26 Dec 2025. Recruitment status is as the sponsor reported it: confirm with the study team.
- Official title
- A Wearable for Post-stroke Rehabilitative Multi-muscle Stimulation Inspired by the Natural Organization of Neuromuscular Control
- ClinicalTrials.gov ID
- NCT04154514
- Acronym / sponsor ID
- CREC_RIF_PROTOCOL version 01
- Conditions
- Chronic Stroke
- Study type
- Interventional
- Recruitment status
- Completed
- Enrolment
- 53 participants (actual)
- Lead sponsor
- Chinese University of Hong KongUniversity, hospital or other
- Collaborators
- The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, City University of Hong Kong, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine
- Study start
- 1 Feb 2019 (actual)
- Primary completion
- 1 Dec 2025 (actual)
- Study completion
- 1 Dec 2025 (actual)
- First posted
- 6 Nov 2019 (actual)
- Results
- Not posted in the source record
Clinical summary
The research question as the sponsor registered it. This describes what the study plans to test, not what it found.
Participants are seeking to unleash the full therapeutic potential of a newly developed, customizable and potentially commericializable 10-channel Functional Electrical Stimulation (FES) to rehabilitate the gait of chronic stroke survivors. Each subject will undergo 18-sessions (~1 month) FES training. Participants will utilize the theory of muscle synergies from motor neurosciences, which are defined as neural modules of motor control that coordinate the spatiotemporal activation patterns of multiple muscles, to guide our personal selections of muscles for FES. It is hypothesized that chronic stroke survivors will learn from FES stimulations, over several daily sessions, both by suppressing the original abnormal muscle synergies and by employing the normal muscle synergies as specified in the FES. It is also expected that the walk synergies of the paretic side of chronic stroke survivors should be more similar to healthy muscle synergies at the two post-training time points than before training.
Detailed description
Stroke is one of the leading causes of long-term adult disability worldwide. The impaired ability to walk post-stroke severely limits mobility and quality of life. Many recently-developed assistive technologies for gait rehabilitation are at present only marginally better at best than traditional therapies in their efficacies. There is an urgent need of novel, clinically viable, and effective gait rehabilitative strategies that can provide even better functional outcome for stroke survivors with diverse presentations.
Among the many new post-stroke interventions, functional electrical stimulation (FES) of muscles remains attractive. FES is a neural-rehabilitative technology that communicates control signals from an external device to the neuromuscular system. There is increasing recognition that rehabilitation paradigms should promote restitution of the patient's muscle coordination towards the normal pattern during training, and FES can achieve this goal when stimulations are applied to the set of muscles whose natural coordination is impaired. For this reason, FES is a very promising interventional strategy. Existing FES paradigms, however, have yielded ambiguous results in previous clinical trials, especially those for chronic survivors, likely because either stimulations were applied only to single or a few muscles, or the stimulation pattern did not mimic the natural muscle coordination pattern during gait. A multi-muscle FES, when applied to a larger functional set of muscles and driven by their natural coordination pattern, can guide muscle activations towards the normal pattern through neuroplasticity, thus restore impairment at the level of muscle-activation deficit.
The first aim of our project is to utilize a 8-channel FES wearable for delivering multi-muscle FES to muscles in the lower-limb muscles. Participants will attempt to rehabilitate the gait of chronic stroke survivors over 12 training sessions by delivering stimulations to multiple muscles, in their natural coordination pattern, using our wearable. As such, participants will utilize the theory of muscle synergy from motor neuroscience to guide our personalizable selections of muscles for FES. Muscle synergies are hypothesized neural modules of motor control that coordinate the spatiotemporal activation patterns of multiple muscles. Our customizable FES pattern for each stroke survivor will be constructed based on the normal muscle synergies that are absent in the stroke survivor's muscle pattern during walking. Since muscle synergies represent the natural motor-control units used by the nervous system, reinforcement of their activations through FES should lead to restoration of normal neuromuscular coordination, thus more natural post-training gait.
Our second aim is to evaluate the effectiveness of our FES paradigm by assessing the walk-muscle synergies in the paretic and non-paretic legs of the trained stroke survivors, before, after, and 1 month following our intervention. In doing so, participants hope to explore whether lower-limb muscle synergy can be a physiologically-based marker of motor impairment for stroke survivors.
If our muscle-synergy-based multi-muscle FES is indeed efficacious, our strategy will help many disabled chronic stroke survivors to regain mobility, thus living with a much higher quality of life in the decades to come. The clinical and societal impact of our research will be huge.
Study design
- Primary purpose
- Treatment
- Allocation
- Non-randomised
- Intervention model
- Single group
- Masking
- None (open label)
- Number of arms
- 2
| Arm | Type | Receives |
|---|---|---|
| Delivering FES to stroke survivors | Experimental | Device: A functional electrical stimulation device for post-stroke rehabilitationIn stroke survivors, normal and abnormal muscle synergies will also be determined from their walk EMGs. Our proposed FES intervention involves delivering stimulations to muscles with waveforms generated from the activations of all the normal synergies not observed in each stroke survivor. We are going to employ the wearable to deliver personalized muscle-synergy-based FES stimulations to multiple groups of leg muscles on the stroke-affected side of elderly chronic stroke survivors as they walk on a treadmill/overground for gait rehabilitation. We hypothesized that the subject will essentially be walking with his/her abnormal muscle pattern superimposed with the artificially introduced "normal" muscle pattern coming from FES. |
| Delivery no current FES to stroke survivors (Sham group) | Experimental | Device: A functional electrical stimulation device for post-stroke rehabilitationIn stroke survivors, normal and abnormal muscle synergies will also be determined from their walk EMGs. Our proposed FES intervention involves delivering stimulations to muscles with waveforms generated from the activations of all the normal synergies not observed in each stroke survivor. Additionally, we are going to introduce a sham group. We are going to employ the wearable to multiple groups of leg muscles on the stroke-affected side of elderly chronic stroke survivors without any stimulation as they walk on a treadmill or overground for gait rehabilitation. The purpose of the sham group is to empirically validate the effectiveness of the FES wearable. |
Who may qualify
- Ages
- 40 to 85 years
- Sex
- All
- Healthy volunteers
- Not accepted
- Age groups
- Adult, Older adult
Key inclusion criteria (3 listed)
- Right-handed elderly chronic stroke survivors; age ≥40; ≥6 months post-stroke
- Unilateral ischemic brain lesions
- Participants should be able to walk continuously for ≥15 min. with or without assistive aid
Key exclusion criteria (6 listed)
- Cannot comprehend and follow instructions, or with a score <21 on the mini-mental state exam;
- Have cardiac pacemaker;
- Have skin lesions at the locations where FES or EMG electrodes may be attached;
- Have major depression;
- Present with severe neglect
Eligibility is decided by the study team after screening; this overview does not establish that a patient qualifies. Full inclusion and exclusion criteria.
Interventions
| Intervention | Type | Arms |
|---|---|---|
| A functional electrical stimulation device for post-stroke rehabilitationMost of the FDA-approved commercial FES devices deliver therapy that targets specific kinematic impairment in the step cycle (e.g., foot drop). Our device will be unique in that it can stimulate many muscles around multiple joints for a more comprehensive and naturalistic restoration of lower-limb motor functions. | Device | Delivering FES to stroke survivors, Delivery no current FES to stroke survivors (Sham group) |
Primary outcome
Surface electromyographic signals from up to 14 muscles on the paretic and non-paretic side during gait.
Time frame: The assessment will be performed at baseline
To assess the muscle synergies, surface EMGs will be recorded from 14 muscles (tibialis anterior (TA), medical gastrocnemius (MG), soleus (SOL), vastus medialis (VM), rectus femoris (RF), hamstrings (HAM), adductor longus (AL), gluteus maximus (GM) lateral gastrocnemius (LG), vastus lateralis (VL), tensor fasciae latae (TFL), erector spinae (ES), external oblique (EO), and latissimus dorsi (LatDor)), using a wireless EMG system (Delsys; 2000 Hz). All electrodes will be securely attached to skin surface using double-sided and medical tapes.
Surface electromyographic signals from up to 14 muscles on the paretic and non-paretic side during gait.
Time frame: The assessment will be performed at 5.5 weeks
To assess the muscle synergies, surface EMGs will be recorded from 14 muscles (tibialis anterior (TA), medical gastrocnemius (MG), soleus (SOL), vastus medialis (VM), rectus femoris (RF), hamstrings (HAM), adductor longus (AL), gluteus maximus (GM) lateral gastrocnemius (LG), vastus lateralis (VL), tensor fasciae latae (TFL), erector spinae (ES), external oblique (EO), and latissimus dorsi (LatDor)), using a wireless EMG system (Delsys; 2000 Hz). All electrodes will be securely attached to skin surface using double-sided and medical tapes.
Surface electromyographic signals from up to 14 muscles on the paretic and non-paretic side during gait.
Time frame: The assessment will be performed at 2.5 weeks
To assess the muscle synergies, surface EMGs will be recorded from 14 muscles (tibialis anterior (TA), medical gastrocnemius (MG), soleus (SOL), vastus medialis (VM), rectus femoris (RF), hamstrings (HAM), adductor longus (AL), gluteus maximus (GM) lateral gastrocnemius (LG), vastus lateralis (VL), tensor fasciae latae (TFL), erector spinae (ES), external oblique (EO), and latissimus dorsi (LatDor)), using a wireless EMG system (Delsys; 2000 Hz). All electrodes will be securely attached to skin surface using double-sided and medical tapes.
12 secondary outcomes
Gait kinemetics
Time frame: The assessment will be performed at baseline
Gait kinemetics
Time frame: The assessment will be performed at 5.5 weeks
Gait kinemetics
Time frame: The assessment will be performed at 2.5 weeks
Gait kinemetics
Time frame: The assessment will be performed at 4 weeks
Fugl-Meyer assessment score (lower-limb)
Time frame: The assessment will be performed at baseline
Fugl-Meyer assessment score (lower-limb)
Time frame: The assessment will be performed at 5.5 weeks
Fugl-Meyer assessment score (lower-limb)
Time frame: The assessment will be performed at 2.5 weeks
Fugl-Meyer assessment score (lower-limb)
Time frame: The assessment will be performed at 4 weeks
Mini-BEStest
Time frame: The assessment will be performed at baseline
Mini-BEStest
Time frame: The assessment will be performed at 5.5 weeks
Mini-BEStest
Time frame: The assessment will be performed at 2.5 weeks
Mini-BEStest
Time frame: The assessment will be performed at 4 weeks
Results and safety
The study is completed, but results are not available in the source record. That does not mean the treatment did or did not work.
Research links
- Official record on ClinicalTrials.govLast updated by the sponsor 26 Dec 2025.
- Background: PubMed 7762050Perry J, Garrett M, Gronley JK, Mulroy SJ. Classification of walking handicap in the stroke population. Stroke. 1995 Jun;26(6):982-9. doi: 10.1161/01.str.26.6.982.
- Background: PubMed 19822722Krasovsky T, Levin MF. Review: toward a better understanding of coordination in healthy and poststroke gait. Neurorehabil Neural Repair. 2010 Mar-Apr;24(3):213-24. doi: 10.1177/1545968309348509. Epub 2009 Oct 12.
- Background: PubMed 19182079Kollen BJ, Lennon S, Lyons B, Wheatley-Smith L, Scheper M, Buurke JH, Halfens J, Geurts AC, Kwakkel G. The effectiveness of the Bobath concept in stroke rehabilitation: what is the evidence? Stroke. 2009 Apr;40(4):e89-97. doi: 10.1161/STROKEAHA.108.533828. Epub 2009 Jan 29.
- Background: PubMed 29546057Cho JE, Yoo JS, Kim KE, Cho ST, Jang WS, Cho KH, Lee WH. Systematic Review of Appropriate Robotic Intervention for Gait Function in Subacute Stroke Patients. Biomed Res Int. 2018 Feb 6;2018:4085298. doi: 10.1155/2018/4085298. eCollection 2018.
- Background: PubMed 16004574Peckham PH, Knutson JS. Functional electrical stimulation for neuromuscular applications. Annu Rev Biomed Eng. 2005;7:327-60. doi: 10.1146/annurev.bioeng.6.040803.140103.
- Background: PubMed 17299744Sheffler LR, Chae J. Neuromuscular electrical stimulation in neurorehabilitation. Muscle Nerve. 2007 May;35(5):562-90. doi: 10.1002/mus.20758.
- Background: PubMed 13761879LIBERSON WT, HOLMQUEST HJ, SCOT D, DOW M. Functional electrotherapy: stimulation of the peroneal nerve synchronized with the swing phase of the gait of hemiplegic patients. Arch Phys Med Rehabil. 1961 Feb;42:101-5. No abstract available.
- Background: PubMed 22559959Heller BW, Clarke AJ, Good TR, Healey TJ, Nair S, Pratt EJ, Reeves ML, van der Meulen JM, Barker AT. Automated setup of functional electrical stimulation for drop foot using a novel 64 channel prototype stimulator and electrode array: results from a gait-lab based study. Med Eng Phys. 2013 Jan;35(1):74-81. doi: 10.1016/j.medengphy.2012.03.012. Epub 2012 May 4.
- Background: PubMed 23231828Springer S, Vatine JJ, Wolf A, Laufer Y. The effects of dual-channel functional electrical stimulation on stance phase sagittal kinematics in patients with hemiparesis. J Electromyogr Kinesiol. 2013 Apr;23(2):476-82. doi: 10.1016/j.jelekin.2012.10.017. Epub 2012 Dec 8.
- Background: PubMed 25227538You G, Liang H, Yan T. Functional electrical stimulation early after stroke improves lower limb motor function and ability in activities of daily living. NeuroRehabilitation. 2014;35(3):381-9. doi: 10.3233/NRE-141129.
- Background: PubMed 16322492Daly JJ, Roenigk K, Holcomb J, Rogers JM, Butler K, Gansen J, McCabe J, Fredrickson E, Marsolais EB, Ruff RL. A randomized controlled trial of functional neuromuscular stimulation in chronic stroke subjects. Stroke. 2006 Jan;37(1):172-8. doi: 10.1161/01.STR.0000195129.95220.77. Epub 2005 Dec 1.
- Background: PubMed 15077655Alon G. Use of neuromuscular electrical stimulation in neureorehabilitation: a challenge to all. J Rehabil Res Dev. 2003 Nov-Dec;40(6):ix-xii. doi: 10.1682/jrrd.2003.11.0009. No abstract available.
- Individual participant dataSharing planned: Undecided
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Referral and contact
AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals. Contact the study team or a site listed below; they decide who can take part. This study is not recruiting at the moment.
The record lists no contact. Use the official record to reach the sponsor.
1 site in 1 country: see every site and its status.
Questions about this trial
What is this clinical trial studying?
A study testing A functional electrical stimulation device for post-stroke rehabilitation in people with Chronic Stroke, run by Chinese University of Hong Kong at 1 site in Hong Kong.
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 6 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 26 Dec 2025. 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 Hong Kong. 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?
Surface electromyographic signals from up to 14 muscles on the paretic and non-paretic side during gait. (time frame: The assessment will be performed at baseline). The study lists 3 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 NCT04154514, which also lists 61 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 26 Dec 2025.