Deconstructing Post Stroke Hemiparesis (TRACTs)

Providence VA Medical Center

Status: Enrolling

Conditions: Stroke

Study type: Observational

Funder types: Other U.S. Federal agency

Identifiers

NCT05993221

1689966

Details and patient eligibility

About

TRACTs (DeconsTructing Post StRoke HemipAresis for PreCision NeurorehabiliTation) is a single timepoint study that aims to deconstruct post-stroke deficits of the upper extremity into distinct components and relate these components to brain anatomy and physiology.

Full description

Veterans will be recruited through the Providence Veterans Affairs Medical Center and will have research visits at the Providence VA Center for Neurorestoration and Neurotechnology (CfNN, centerforneuro.org). The research visits will span two to three days. The study will involve motor outcome measures, magnetic resonance imaging of the brain, and transcranial magnetic stimulation. The goal of this study is to associate post-stroke deficits of the upper extremity with brain anatomy and physiology.

Enrollment: 75 estimated patients

Sex: All

Ages: 18 to 90 years old

Volunteers: No Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion criteria

• Diagnosis of a unilateral ischemic stroke occurring >6 months prior as documented in medical chart
• Upper extremity motor impairment as measured by Fugl-Meyer Upper Extremity Assessment ≤60
• Ability to follow simple instructions in English

Exclusion criteria

• Greater than moderate difficulty using the arm and hand pre-dating the stroke as assessed by the questions adapted from the QuickDASH outcome measure score on any question >= 3, which measures physical function and symptoms in people with difficulty using the arm and hand.
• Visual or auditory disorders resulting in the inability to see or hear, respectively, the stimuli presented as part of research sessions
• Inability to maintain a seated position for at least one hour
• Standard MRI exclusion (e.g., significant claustrophobia or inability to tolerate loud noises, cardiac pacemaker (unless MRI-safe), implanted device (deep brain stimulation) or metal in the brain, cervical spinal cord, or upper thoracic spinal cord)
• Standard (single-pulse) TMS exclusion which include (in addition to those listed for MRI) pregnancy/lactation/planning to become pregnant during the study, seizure disorder, and primary or secondary CNS tumors