Borderline Personality DisorderClinicalBPDNCT07197502
Treatment of Borderline Personality Disorder With rTMS
A study testing Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS) in people with Borderline Personality Disorder and Borderline Personality, run by University of California, Los Angeles at 2 sites in United States.
Trial summary
This project studies the effectiveness of brain stimulation on borderline personality disorder (BPD) symptoms. This study is blinded, randomized and will enroll up to 30 participants. Participant will be consented for the study remotely via a secure internet platform called Zoom. Read more about this study
- Who is it for?
- Ages 18 to 65 years
- Conditions the study is for
- Borderline Personality Disorder, Borderline Personality, BPD - Borderline Personality Disorder
- What is being tested?
- Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS)
- Type of treatment
- Medical device
- Could I receive a placebo?
- No, everyone receives an active treatment
- How many people
- 30 participants
- Where
- 2 sitesUnited States
- Study dates
- 1 Mar 2025to 31 Dec 2027
- 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 to 65 years
- All sexes
- No healthy volunteers
- Adult, Older adult
- Age of 18-65
- DSM-5 Diagnosis of BPD based upon a psychiatric evaluation and ZAN-BPD
- Fluent English speaker
- Signed informed consent
Trial locations and contacts
2 sites in 1 country. Contact the study team or a site near you to ask about taking part.
Research Coordinator contact
United States2 sites, 2 recruiting
- Recruiting
Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior at UCLA
Los Angeles, California, 90024
Elizabeth Pinkerton, 310-794-0331, EPinkerton@mednet.ucla.edu
Research Coordinator, TMSResearch@mednet.ucla.edu
- Recruiting
Semel Institute/ UCLA TMS
Los Angeles, California, 90024
Elizabeth Pinkerton, BS, 310-794-0331, EPinkerton@mednet.ucla.edu
UCLA TMS Research Coordinator, TMSResearch@mednet.ucla.edu
About this study
Official title: CLINICAL TRIAL: Treatment of Borderline Personality Disorder by Targeting Ventrolateral Prefrontal-amygdala Circuit With Network-based Neuronavigated Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation
This project studies the effectiveness of brain stimulation on borderline personality disorder (BPD) symptoms. This study is blinded, randomized and will enroll up to 30 participants.
Participant will be consented for the study remotely via a secure internet platform called Zoom.
Read more
Participants will undergo up to 2 MRI scans, 2 brain wave recording sessions and up to 30 brain stimulation treatments, and complete symptom assessments and cognitive behavioral tasks on a computer. Participation requires minimum of 17 in person visits over the course of 2.5 months.
Participants are randomly assigned active or sham brain stimulation. Participants who received sham brain stimulation have the option to receive additional 15 active brain stimulation session.
Read the detailed description
Borderline personality disorder (BPD) is a serious and pervasive psychiatric condition with a prevalence of 1-5% among the general population. Two core symptoms of BPD are dysfunctional emotion regulation and marked impulsivity resulting in severe psychological suffering in terms of depression and anxiety as well as maladaptive impulsive acts, particularly self-harming behaviors including suicide. Recent advances in affective neuroscience of BPD combined with progress in brain imaging and neuromodulation technologies have opened new avenues for the development of innovative, brain-based, and more effective treatments for BPD.
This project aims to test the efficacy of a novel circuit-based treatment for BPD. The investigators will utilize multimodal neuroimaging Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI), and electroencephalogram (EEG) and BPD-, depression- and anxiety-related clinical scales to objectively measure the impact of Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS) treatment on overall BPD as well as depressive and anxiety symptom severity. Furthermore, a battery of cognitive tasks will be used to specifically measure the effect of TMS on the neurobehavioral indicators of impulsivity and emotion regulation.
- Conditions
- Borderline Personality Disorder, Borderline Personality, BPD - Borderline Personality Disorder
- Being tested
- Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS)
- Keywords
- BPD, rTMS, TMS, Borderline Personality Disorder
- Medical subject headings
- Borderline Personality Disorder
What participants receive
What participants receive. In a randomised study each person is assigned to one group by chance.
Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS)Device
Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) is a noninvasive procedure that uses magnetic fields to stimulate nerve cells in the brain to improve symptoms of depression. Using pulsed magnetic fields, transcranial magnetic stimulation therapy stimulates the part of the brain thought to be involved with mood regulation. These magnetic fields do not directly affect the whole brain; they only reach about 2-3 centimeters into the brain directly beneath the treatment coil.As these magnetic fields move into the brain, they produce very small electrical currents. These electrical currents activate cells within the brain, causing them to rewire, a process called neuroplasticity.
| Study group | Role | What they receive |
|---|---|---|
| Active | Experimental | Subjects in this group will receive active TMS treatment at vlPFC delivered by a magnet called A/P (active/placebo) coil. The A/P coil supports double-blinding of treatment. The coil has two sides, one of which is shielded so that no energy is imparted to the brain when the shielded side is applied to the subject's head. Small skin electrodes are applied to the scalp under the coil that impart a small microcurrent to the scalp simulating the sensation of active treatment. The operator receives a code from the device instructing them which side of the coil to use for each subject, ensuring complete treatment blinding. Receives: Device: Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS) |
| Sham- followed by Active treatment | Experimental | Patients will be randomized to receive active or sham at vlPFC. Subjects assigned to the sham-controlled condition will be offered the opportunity to cross-over to open - label TMS treatment at the conclusion of the double-blind phase. This phase will serve as an incentive to recruitment because it ensures that all subjects (even those initially receiving sham stimulation) will eventually be eligible to receive active treatment. Rating scale scores will be obtained in the open-label extension just as scheduled in the controlled phase to gather additional information on efficacy of the active intervention. Receives: Device: Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS) |
What is being measured
The primary outcome is the main question the study is designed to answer.
Borderline Symptom List 23 (BSL-23)
Borderline Symptom List 23 (BSL-23)
Measured: Baseline (Day 1) and Post treatment (Day 17)
Clinical Global Impression for Borderline Personality Disorder (CGI-BPD)
Clinical Global Impression for Borderline Personality Disorder (CGI-BPD)
Measured: Baseline (Day 1) and Post treatment (Day 17)
Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale (DERS)
Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale (DERS)
Measured: Baseline (Day 1) and Post treatment (Day 17)
Timeline
From the start of the study to its completion; the mark is today. Estimated dates are the sponsor’s plan.
- First posted29 Sep 2025
- Study start1 Mar 2025
- Primary completion31 Dec 2027 (estimated)
- Study completion31 Dec 2027 (estimated)
Resources
- Official record on ClinicalTrials.govThe registry entry this page is built from, with its full change history.
- Other trials for Borderline Personality DisorderStudies of the same condition, open and under way.
- More trials run by University of California, Los AngelesThe 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
- Randomised
- Intervention model
- Crossover
- Masking
- Single blind
- Who is masked
- Participant
- Enrolment
- 30 participants (estimated)
Sponsor and investigators
- Lead sponsor
- University of California, Los Angeles
- Sponsor type
- University, hospital or other
- Responsible party
- Principal investigator, Andrew F. Leuchter, University of California, Los Angeles
IDs, dates and publications
- ClinicalTrials.gov ID
- NCT07197502
- Sponsor's protocol ID
- 23-001340
- Acronym
- ClinicalBPD
- Status last verified
- Aug 2026
- First submitted
- 18 Sep 2025
- Last updated
- 10 Aug 2026
- Results posted
- No
- Data monitoring committee
- No
- FDA-regulated drug
- No
- FDA-regulated device
- Yes
Study at a glance
From the registry record, last updated by the sponsor on 10 Aug 2026. Recruitment status is as the sponsor reported it: confirm with the study team.
- Official title
- CLINICAL TRIAL: Treatment of Borderline Personality Disorder by Targeting Ventrolateral Prefrontal-amygdala Circuit With Network-based Neuronavigated Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation
- ClinicalTrials.gov ID
- NCT07197502
- Acronym / sponsor ID
- ClinicalBPD / 23-001340
- Conditions
- Borderline Personality Disorder, Borderline Personality, BPD - Borderline Personality Disorder
- Keywords
- BPD, rTMS, TMS, Borderline Personality Disorder
- Study type
- Interventional
- Recruitment status
- Recruiting
- Enrolment
- 30 participants (estimated)
- Lead sponsor
- University of California, Los AngelesUniversity, hospital or other
- Study start
- 1 Mar 2025 (actual)
- Primary completion
- 31 Dec 2027 (estimated)
- Study completion
- 31 Dec 2027 (estimated)
- First posted
- 29 Sep 2025 (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.
This project studies the effectiveness of brain stimulation on borderline personality disorder (BPD) symptoms. This study is blinded, randomized and will enroll up to 30 participants.
Participant will be consented for the study remotely via a secure internet platform called Zoom.
Participants will undergo up to 2 MRI scans, 2 brain wave recording sessions and up to 30 brain stimulation treatments, and complete symptom assessments and cognitive behavioral tasks on a computer. Participation requires minimum of 17 in person visits over the course of 2.5 months.
Participants are randomly assigned active or sham brain stimulation. Participants who received sham brain stimulation have the option to receive additional 15 active brain stimulation session.
Detailed description
Borderline personality disorder (BPD) is a serious and pervasive psychiatric condition with a prevalence of 1-5% among the general population. Two core symptoms of BPD are dysfunctional emotion regulation and marked impulsivity resulting in severe psychological suffering in terms of depression and anxiety as well as maladaptive impulsive acts, particularly self-harming behaviors including suicide. Recent advances in affective neuroscience of BPD combined with progress in brain imaging and neuromodulation technologies have opened new avenues for the development of innovative, brain-based, and more effective treatments for BPD.
This project aims to test the efficacy of a novel circuit-based treatment for BPD. The investigators will utilize multimodal neuroimaging Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI), and electroencephalogram (EEG) and BPD-, depression- and anxiety-related clinical scales to objectively measure the impact of Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS) treatment on overall BPD as well as depressive and anxiety symptom severity. Furthermore, a battery of cognitive tasks will be used to specifically measure the effect of TMS on the neurobehavioral indicators of impulsivity and emotion regulation.
Study design
- Primary purpose
- Treatment
- Allocation
- Randomised
- Intervention model
- Crossover
- Masking
- Single blind (participant)
- Number of arms
- 2
| Arm | Type | Receives |
|---|---|---|
| Active | Experimental | Device: Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS)Subjects in this group will receive active TMS treatment at vlPFC delivered by a magnet called A/P (active/placebo) coil. The A/P coil supports double-blinding of treatment. The coil has two sides, one of which is shielded so that no energy is imparted to the brain when the shielded side is applied to the subject's head. Small skin electrodes are applied to the scalp under the coil that impart a small microcurrent to the scalp simulating the sensation of active treatment. The operator receives a code from the device instructing them which side of the coil to use for each subject, ensuring complete treatment blinding. |
| Sham- followed by Active treatment | Experimental | Device: Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS)Patients will be randomized to receive active or sham at vlPFC. Subjects assigned to the sham-controlled condition will be offered the opportunity to cross-over to open - label TMS treatment at the conclusion of the double-blind phase. This phase will serve as an incentive to recruitment because it ensures that all subjects (even those initially receiving sham stimulation) will eventually be eligible to receive active treatment. Rating scale scores will be obtained in the open-label extension just as scheduled in the controlled phase to gather additional information on efficacy of the active intervention. |
Who may qualify
- Ages
- 18 to 65 years
- Sex
- All
- Healthy volunteers
- Not accepted
- Age groups
- Adult, Older adult
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS)Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) is a noninvasive procedure that uses magnetic fields to stimulate nerve cells in the brain to improve symptoms of depression. Using pulsed magnetic fields, transcranial magnetic stimulation therapy stimulates the part of the brain thought to be involved with mood regulation. These magnetic fields do not directly affect the whole brain; they only reach about 2-3 centimeters into the brain directly beneath the treatment coil.As these magnetic fields move into the brain, they produce very small electrical currents. These electrical currents activate cells within the brain, causing them to rewire, a process called neuroplasticity. | Device | Active, Sham- followed by Active treatment |
Primary outcome
Borderline Symptom List 23 (BSL-23)
Time frame: Baseline (Day 1) and Post treatment (Day 17)
Borderline Symptom List 23 (BSL-23)
Clinical Global Impression for Borderline Personality Disorder (CGI-BPD)
Time frame: Baseline (Day 1) and Post treatment (Day 17)
Clinical Global Impression for Borderline Personality Disorder (CGI-BPD)
Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale (DERS)
Time frame: Baseline (Day 1) and Post treatment (Day 17)
Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale (DERS)
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 10 Aug 2026.
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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.
Research Coordinator contact
2 sites in 1 country: see every site and its status.
Questions about this trial
What is this clinical trial studying?
A study testing Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS) in people with Borderline Personality Disorder and Borderline Personality, run by University of California, Los Angeles at 2 sites 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?
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: looking for participants now, as of the sponsor's last update on 10 Aug 2026. Status can change between updates, so confirm with the study contact before making plans.
Where is the study taking place?
The record lists 2 sites 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?
Contact Elizabeth Pinkerton (310-794-0331, EPinkerton@mednet.ucla.edu), or a site near the patient. AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals.
What does the primary outcome measure?
Borderline Symptom List 23 (BSL-23) (time frame: Baseline (Day 1) and Post treatment (Day 17)). 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?
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 10 Aug 2026.