StrokeNCT05465005
Perception of Electrical Stimuli in Individuals With Stroke
A study testing Torque Generation in people with Stroke, run by Netta Gurari at 1 site in United States.
Trial summary
To successfully manipulate objects in one's surroundings, such as when lifting a cup, one must accurately perceive their physical interactions. This includes accurately interpreting the tactile cues arising at one's fingertips when touching an object. Read more about this study
- Who is it for?
- Ages 18 years and olderHealthy volunteers can take part
- Conditions the study is for
- Stroke
- What is being tested?
- Torque Generation
- Type of treatment
- Lifestyle or therapy programme
- How many people
- 45 participants
- Where
- 1 siteUnited States
- Study dates
- 1 Feb 2022to Mar 2028
- Phase
- Interventional
- Are there results?
- Not yet: the study is under way
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 years and older
- All sexes
- Healthy volunteers accepted
- Adult, Older adult
Who may be able to join
- For the participants with stroke, i) a single unilateral cortical lesion that took place at least one year prior and ii) an absence of comorbid neurological impairments
- Ability to understand and complete the experimental tasks
- Capacity to provide informed consent
- At least 18 years of age
Who cannot join
- Major injury to either arm
- Sensory neuropathy
Trial locations and contacts
1 site in 1 country.
United States1 site
Virginia Tech Biomedical Engineering and Mechanics
Blacksburg, Virginia, 24061
About this study
Official title: Perception of Electrical Stimuli During Muscle Activation in Individuals With Stroke
To successfully manipulate objects in one's surroundings, such as when lifting a cup, one must accurately perceive their physical interactions. This includes accurately interpreting the tactile cues arising at one's fingertips when touching an object. Currently, tactile perception is assessed in individuals with stroke using passive protocols. Research has yet to explore whether activating one's muscles impacts the tactile perceptual process in individuals with stroke despite previous research demonstrating the effect of muscle activation on tactile perception in individuals who are neurologically intact. The proposed research will be the first to address the impact of muscle activation, in addition to stroke, on tactile perception. As such, the proposed research is significant for advancing our understanding of the extent to which tactile deficits occur in individuals with stroke, particularly during volitional movement.
Read the detailed description
Participants will detect an externally-applied electrical stimulus at their fingertip with the elbow: 1) relaxed and flexed to 2) 25% and 3) 50% of their maximum voluntary torque (MVT). We will compare the detection threshold for these three conditions between each arm of participants with stroke and similarly-aged controls. Based on pilot data, we hypothesize that the detection threshold will be largest at the paretic arm when flexing to 50% MVT due to the greatest inhibition of sensory signals. Findings will indicate whether stroke negatively impacts an individual's ability to detect tactile stimuli during volitional sensorimotor tasks.
- Conditions
- Stroke
- Being tested
- Torque Generation
- Keywords
- tactile perception, somatosensation, muscle activation
- Medical subject headings
- Stroke
What participants receive
What participants receive. In a randomised study each person is assigned to one group by chance.
Torque GenerationBehavioural
Also called Muscle activation
Relaxed, or flexing about the elbow to 25% or 50% of the maximum elbow torque that one can generate.
What is being measured
The primary outcome is the main question the study is designed to answer.
Detection threshold
Minimum magnitude of current at which an electrical stimulus can be detected
Measured: ~5 minutes
Timeline
From the start of the study to its completion; the mark is today. Estimated dates are the sponsor’s plan.
- First posted19 Jul 2022
- Study start1 Feb 2022
- Primary completionMar 2028 (estimated)
- Study completionMar 2028 (estimated)
Resources
- Official record on ClinicalTrials.govThe registry entry this page is built from, with its full change history.
- Publications (7)Papers the sponsor has linked to this study.
- Other trials for StrokeStudies of the same condition, open and under way.
- 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
- Basic science
- Allocation
- Not applicable
- Intervention model
- Single group
- Model description
- We will compare outcome measures across three experimental conditions and each upper extremity in participants with stroke and similarly-aged controls.
- Masking
- None (open label)
- Enrolment
- 45 participants (estimated)
Sponsor and investigators
- Lead sponsor
- Netta Gurari
- Sponsor type
- University, hospital or other
- Collaborators
- Northwestern University, Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD), Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University
- Responsible party
- Sponsor-investigator, Netta Gurari, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University
IDs, dates and publications
- ClinicalTrials.gov ID
- NCT05465005
- Sponsor's protocol ID
- K25HD096116
- Other IDs
- K25HD096116
- Status last verified
- Apr 2026
- First submitted
- 15 Jul 2022
- Last updated
- 13 Apr 2026
- Results posted
- No
- Data monitoring committee
- No
- FDA-regulated drug
- No
- FDA-regulated device
- No
- Individual data sharing
- No
Publications
Post LJ, Zompa IC, Chapman CE. Perception of vibrotactile stimuli during motor activity in human subjects. Exp Brain Res. 1994;100(1):107-20. doi: 10.1007/BF00227283.
PubMed 7813639Chapman, C. E., Zompa, I. C., Williams, S. R., Shenasa, J. & Jiang, W. Factors influencing the perception of tactile stimuli during movement. in Somesthesis and the Neurobiology of the Somatosensory Cortex (eds. Franzén, O., Johansson, R. & Terenius, L.) 307-320 (Birkhäuser Basel, 1996).
Seki K, Perlmutter SI, Fetz EE. Sensory input to primate spinal cord is presynaptically inhibited during voluntary movement. Nat Neurosci. 2003 Dec;6(12):1309-16. doi: 10.1038/nn1154. Epub 2003 Nov 16.
PubMed 14625555Pavlenko, V. B. Self-initiated motor behavioral act-related neuronal activity in the cat Locus Coeruleus. Neurophysiology 35, 29-37 (2003).
Wei K, Glaser JI, Deng L, Thompson CK, Stevenson IH, Wang Q, Hornby TG, Heckman CJ, Kording KP. Serotonin affects movement gain control in the spinal cord. J Neurosci. 2014 Sep 17;34(38):12690-700. doi: 10.1523/JNEUROSCI.1855-14.2014.
PubMed 25232107Jacobs BL, Martin-Cora FJ, Fornal CA. Activity of medullary serotonergic neurons in freely moving animals. Brain Res Brain Res Rev. 2002 Oct;40(1-3):45-52. doi: 10.1016/s0165-0173(02)00187-x.
PubMed 12589905Seki K, Fetz EE. Gating of sensory input at spinal and cortical levels during preparation and execution of voluntary movement. J Neurosci. 2012 Jan 18;32(3):890-902. doi: 10.1523/JNEUROSCI.4958-11.2012.
PubMed 22262887
Study at a glance
From the registry record, last updated by the sponsor on 13 Apr 2026. Recruitment status is as the sponsor reported it: confirm with the study team.
- Official title
- Perception of Electrical Stimuli During Muscle Activation in Individuals With Stroke
- ClinicalTrials.gov ID
- NCT05465005
- Acronym / sponsor ID
- K25HD096116
- Conditions
- Stroke
- Keywords
- tactile perception, somatosensation, muscle activation
- Study type
- Interventional
- Recruitment status
- Active, not recruiting
- Enrolment
- 45 participants (estimated)
- Lead sponsor
- Netta GurariUniversity, hospital or other
- Collaborators
- Northwestern University, Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD), Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University
- Study start
- 1 Feb 2022 (actual)
- Primary completion
- Mar 2028 (estimated)
- Study completion
- Mar 2028 (estimated)
- First posted
- 19 Jul 2022 (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.
To successfully manipulate objects in one's surroundings, such as when lifting a cup, one must accurately perceive their physical interactions. This includes accurately interpreting the tactile cues arising at one's fingertips when touching an object. Currently, tactile perception is assessed in individuals with stroke using passive protocols. Research has yet to explore whether activating one's muscles impacts the tactile perceptual process in individuals with stroke despite previous research demonstrating the effect of muscle activation on tactile perception in individuals who are neurologically intact. The proposed research will be the first to address the impact of muscle activation, in addition to stroke, on tactile perception. As such, the proposed research is significant for advancing our understanding of the extent to which tactile deficits occur in individuals with stroke, particularly during volitional movement.
Detailed description
Participants will detect an externally-applied electrical stimulus at their fingertip with the elbow: 1) relaxed and flexed to 2) 25% and 3) 50% of their maximum voluntary torque (MVT). We will compare the detection threshold for these three conditions between each arm of participants with stroke and similarly-aged controls. Based on pilot data, we hypothesize that the detection threshold will be largest at the paretic arm when flexing to 50% MVT due to the greatest inhibition of sensory signals. Findings will indicate whether stroke negatively impacts an individual's ability to detect tactile stimuli during volitional sensorimotor tasks.
Study design
- Primary purpose
- Basic science
- Allocation
- Not applicable
- Intervention model
- Single group
- Masking
- None (open label)
- Model description
- We will compare outcome measures across three experimental conditions and each upper extremity in participants with stroke and similarly-aged controls.
Who may qualify
- Ages
- 18 years and older
- Sex
- All
- Healthy volunteers
- Accepted
- Age groups
- Adult, Older adult
Key inclusion criteria (4 listed)
- For the participants with stroke, i) a single unilateral cortical lesion that took place at least one year prior and ii) an absence of comorbid neurological impairments
- Ability to understand and complete the experimental tasks
- Capacity to provide informed consent
- At least 18 years of age
Key exclusion criteria (2 listed)
- Major injury to either arm
- Sensory neuropathy
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Torque GenerationAlso: Muscle activationRelaxed, or flexing about the elbow to 25% or 50% of the maximum elbow torque that one can generate. | Behavioural | – |
Primary outcome
Detection threshold
Time frame: ~5 minutes
Minimum magnitude of current at which an electrical stimulus can be detected
Results and safety
This study is still under way. Results are not available in the source record yet.
Research links
- Official record on ClinicalTrials.govLast updated by the sponsor 13 Apr 2026.
- Background: PubMed 7813639Post LJ, Zompa IC, Chapman CE. Perception of vibrotactile stimuli during motor activity in human subjects. Exp Brain Res. 1994;100(1):107-20. doi: 10.1007/BF00227283.
- BackgroundChapman, C. E., Zompa, I. C., Williams, S. R., Shenasa, J. & Jiang, W. Factors influencing the perception of tactile stimuli during movement. in Somesthesis and the Neurobiology of the Somatosensory Cortex (eds. Franzén, O., Johansson, R. & Terenius, L.) 307-320 (Birkhäuser Basel, 1996).
- Background: PubMed 14625555Seki K, Perlmutter SI, Fetz EE. Sensory input to primate spinal cord is presynaptically inhibited during voluntary movement. Nat Neurosci. 2003 Dec;6(12):1309-16. doi: 10.1038/nn1154. Epub 2003 Nov 16.
- BackgroundPavlenko, V. B. Self-initiated motor behavioral act-related neuronal activity in the cat Locus Coeruleus. Neurophysiology 35, 29-37 (2003).
- Background: PubMed 25232107Wei K, Glaser JI, Deng L, Thompson CK, Stevenson IH, Wang Q, Hornby TG, Heckman CJ, Kording KP. Serotonin affects movement gain control in the spinal cord. J Neurosci. 2014 Sep 17;34(38):12690-700. doi: 10.1523/JNEUROSCI.1855-14.2014.
- Background: PubMed 12589905Jacobs BL, Martin-Cora FJ, Fornal CA. Activity of medullary serotonergic neurons in freely moving animals. Brain Res Brain Res Rev. 2002 Oct;40(1-3):45-52. doi: 10.1016/s0165-0173(02)00187-x.
- Background: PubMed 22262887Seki K, Fetz EE. Gating of sensory input at spinal and cortical levels during preparation and execution of voluntary movement. J Neurosci. 2012 Jan 18;32(3):890-902. doi: 10.1523/JNEUROSCI.4958-11.2012.
- Individual participant dataSharing planned: No
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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 Torque Generation in people with Stroke, run by Netta Gurari 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 4 inclusion and 2 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: under way, not looking for participants, as of the sponsor's last update on 13 Apr 2026. 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?
This study is still under way. Results are not available in the source record yet.
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?
Detection threshold (time frame: ~5 minutes). 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 NCT05465005, which also lists 7 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 13 Apr 2026.