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Transcranial Alternating Current StimulationNCT06026826

Intervention Effect of Transcranial Alternating Current Stimulation(tACS) on Anxiety Disorder

A study testing transcranial alternating current stimulation in people with Transcranial Alternating Current Stimulation and Anxiety Disorder, run by Anhui Medical University at 1 site in China.

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 The sponsor has not verified this record for over two years, so it may be out of date.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

To investigate the intervention effect of transcranial alternating current stimulation(tACS) on anxiety symptoms and somatic symptoms in patients with anxiety disorder and its underlying neural mechanism by MRI. Read more about this study

Who is it for?
Ages 18 to 60 years
What is being tested?
transcranial alternating current stimulation
Type of treatment
Medical device
Could I receive a placebo?
Yes, some participants may receive a placebo
How many people
40 participants
Where
1 siteChina
Study dates
1 Nov 2022to 31 Jul 2024
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 18 to 60 years
  • All sexes
  • No healthy volunteers
  • Adult

Who may be able to join

  • the patients were diagnosed by more than 2 psychiatrists and met the diagnostic criteria of DSM-5 for anxiety, and HAMA>14, PHQ-15>5.
  • the age ranged from 18 to 60 years old, and the length of education was more than 5 years.
  • the visual acuity or corrected visual acuity is normal, right-handed, can cooperate with the completion of various experimental tests.

Who cannot join

  • accompanied by severe somatic diseases, such as severe heart, liver, renal insufficiency and so on.
  • accompanied by other neurological diseases, such as stroke, epilepsy and so on. pregnant and lactating women. accompanied by other mental disorders, such as drug abuse, schizophrenia, schizophrenic affective disorder, hysteria, autism and so on.
  • patients with MRI taboos or factors affecting imaging quality, such as cardiac pacemaker, cochlear implant, cardio-cerebrovascular metal stent, metal denture, etc.
  • those who could not cooperate with those who completed the relevant experiments, such as patients with depressive stupor, claustrophobia and so on.

Trial locations and contacts

1 site in 1 country.

China1 site, 1 recruiting
  • Anhui Medical University

    Hefei

    Tongjian Bai, ahmubtj1990@126.com

    Recruiting

Other trials in China

About this study

To investigate the intervention effect of transcranial alternating current stimulation(tACS) on anxiety symptoms and somatic symptoms in patients with anxiety disorder and its underlying neural mechanism by MRI.

Read the detailed description

Forty patients with anxiety disorder diagnosed by DSM-5 were recruited from the second affiliated Hospital of Anhui Medical University. All participants underwent a structured interview and routine laboratory examination before and after receiving tACS. After meeting the inclusion criteria and obtaining informed consent, each participant will complete the clinical evaluation, functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) and tACS treatment conducted by trained researchers at the Neuropsychological Synergetic Innovation Center of Anhui Medical University. All the participants were randomized (1:1) to receive "active" or "sham" treatment protocol. The anode was placed over AF3 with return electrodes placed at the contralateral mastoid process. Fourteen 2-mA sessions (ramp-up and ramp-down periods of 30 and 30 seconds, respectively) were applied for 20 minutes per session, twice daily over 7 consecutive days, and the stimulus frequency was set as 8 Hz. Sham tACS was delivered using the same protocol and current intensity, but the period of active stimulation was only during the ramp-up and ramp-down periods of 30 and 30 seconds.

Before and after the tACS treatment, the patients had receiving a battery measure of neuropsychological tests and Magnetic resonance imaging scan in multimodalities. Neuropsychological assessment included HAMD, HAMA, PHQ15, ISI, ASI, SAS, RRS, IUS. Multimodal fMRI includes 3D-T1, rs-fMRI and DTI.

Neuropsychological evaluation and magnetic resonance imaging data were obtained again 24 hours after the last treatment. The symptoms of the patients were followed up one month after the end of treatment.They were instructed to focus their answers on the past week. Afterwards, they were unblinded by the study coordinator.

Being tested
transcranial alternating current stimulation, sham transcranial alternating current stimulation
Keywords
Transcranial Alternating Current Stimulation, Anxiety Disorder, Magnetic Resonance Imaging
Medical subject headings
Anxiety Disorders

What participants receive

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

  • transcranial alternating current stimulationDevice

    tACS is described as a non-invasive form of brain stimulation that uses a low-intensity, alternating current applied directly to the head through scalp electrodes.

  • sham transcranial alternating current stimulationDevice

    Sham tACS was delivered using the same protocol and current intensity, but the period of active stimulation was only during the ramp-up and ramp-down periods of 30 and 30 seconds.

Study groups in NCT06026826
Study groupRoleWhat they receive
real stimulationActive comparatorParticipants will receive active tACS twice daily for one week. The anode was placed over AF3 with return electrodes placed at the contralateral mastoid process. Fourteen 2-mA sessions (ramp-up and ramp-down periods of 30 and 30 seconds, respectively) were applied for 20 minutes per session, twice daily over 7 consecutive days, and the stimulus frequency was set as 8 Hz.
Receives: Device: transcranial alternating current stimulation
sham stimulationSham comparatorParticipants will receive sham tACS twice daily for one week. Sham tACS was delivered using the same protocol and current intensity, but the period of active stimulation was only during the ramp-up and ramp-down periods of 30 and 30 seconds.
Receives: Device: sham transcranial alternating current stimulation

What is being measured

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

  1. anxiety symptoms

    the change of anxiety symptoms assessed by HAMA scale(Hamilton Anxiety Scale) will constitute the major research outcome measure, to assess response to tACS. HAMA scale scores range from 0 to 56 points, the higher the score indicates the more serious anxiety symptoms

    Measured: baseline and immediately after intervention

  2. resting-state functional connectivity

    the change of resting-state functional connectivity strength between stimulated target and the whole brain areas will be measured by functional MRI.

    Measured: baseline and immediately after intervention

Secondary outcomes (3)
  1. somatic symptoms

    the change of somatic symptoms will be assessed by Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-15). PHQ-15 is composed of 15 physical symptoms that have been extracted from the PHQ. PHQ-15 scale scores range from 0 to 30 points. Higher scores indicate more severe somatic symptoms.

    Measured: baseline and immediately after intervention

  2. SAS(Self-rating anxiety scale)

    Self-rating anxiety scale(SAS) is a supplementary evaluation of the change of anxiety state of patients in this experiment, and it also belongs to the category of self-rating scale. Patients assessed anxiety by checking the frequency of 20 items: none or almost none, sometimes, most of the time, most of the time, or all of the time. SAS scale scores range from 0 to 100 points。The higher the score, the more serious the anxiety symptoms.

    Measured: baseline and immediately after intervention

  3. ISI(The insomnia severity index)

    ISI(The insomnia severity index) is used to evaluate the changes of sleep status of anxiety patients in the recent (2 weeks), which is a self-rating scale. ISI scale scores range from 0 to 28 points. The higher the score is, the worse the sleep quality is. This scale indirectly reflects the changes of patients' anxiety state through evaluation.

    Measured: baseline and immediately after intervention

Timeline

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

  1. First posted7 Sep 2023
  2. Study start1 Nov 2022
  3. Primary completion31 Jul 2024 (estimated)
  4. Study completion31 Jul 2024 (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 N/A
Primary purpose
Treatment
Allocation
Randomised
Intervention model
Parallel groups
Masking
Triple blind
Who is masked
Participant, Investigator, Outcomes assessor
Enrolment
40 participants (estimated)
IDs, dates and publications
ClinicalTrials.gov ID
NCT06026826
Sponsor's protocol ID
AHMU-tACS-anxiety
Status last verified
Oct 2023
First submitted
31 Aug 2023
Last updated
17 Oct 2023
Results posted
No
FDA-regulated drug
No
FDA-regulated device
No

Questions about this trial

What is this clinical trial studying?

A study testing transcranial alternating current stimulation in people with Transcranial Alternating Current Stimulation and Anxiety Disorder, run by Anhui Medical University at 1 site in China.

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 4 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 17 Oct 2023. 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 China. 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. 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.

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 Wang Kai, PhD (+86-0551-62923704, wangkai1964@126.com), or a site near the patient. AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals.

What does the primary outcome measure?

anxiety symptoms (time frame: baseline and immediately after intervention). 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?
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 17 Oct 2023.

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