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Ultrasound for Quantifying Muscle Activation Elicited by Spinal Cord Stimulation and Functional Electrical Stimulation

North Carolina State University · with University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill · NCT07206797

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Opens the official ClinicalTrials.gov record, with the study team’s contacts. Bored Studies doesn’t enroll anyone.

Key facts

Compensation
Not posted. Ask the study team before screening.
Who can join
Ages 18–60 · All sexes
Healthy volunteers
Accepted
Study type
Interventional · Not applicable
Target enrollment
30
US sites recruiting
1
Study start
June 1, 2025
Record last updated
October 14, 2025

Status re-checked against ClinicalTrials.gov within the last 12 hours.

What the study is about

Transcutaneous (non-invasive) spinal cord stimulation (tSCS) has been shown to facilitate volitional motor activity in patients with spinal cord injury. tSCS is known to activate the same neural structures as invasive SCS, meaning it may have the potential for functional restoration without an expensive surgical implant. Functional electrical stimulation (FES) is also used in therapy for patients with spinal cord injury to locally activate paralyzed or weakened muscles. There is evidence that combining FES and tSCS may elicit greater muscle activation than either modality alone.

The objective of this study is to quantify the torque at the ankle joint generated by tSCS, by FES, and by tSCS + FES. Additionally, ultrasound images will be collected during stimulation to provide a metric of muscle activity. The correlation between ultrasound and torque will be assessed to determine if ultrasound is a useful modality for quantifying tSCS-elicited muscle activity.

Being studied: Functional Electrical Stimulation; Transcutaneous (Non-Invasive) Spinal Cord Stimulation; Ultrasound

Conditions: Neuromodulatory Effects of TSCS and FES in Lower Limbs

Eligibility criteria

Copied from the official record. The study team makes the final decision at screening.

Show full criteria

Inclusion Criteria

  • Between 18 and 60 years of age
  • Weight less than 220 lb
  • Healthy and able to walk at preferred speed without an assistive device
  • Able to tolerate functional electrical stimulation and tSCS.

Exclusion Criteria

  • Active infection
  • history of cancer,
  • broken skin, sores, or areas of acute eczema near the electrode sites
  • metal implants, such as staples or pins, near the electrode sites
  • any neurological disorders
  • difficulty walking or an orthopedic condition that would impede walking normally without assistance
  • absent sensation in the lower extremities or trunk (torso),
  • allergies to adhesive skin tapes and/or ultrasound gels,
  • heart conditions
  • an implanted electronic device such as a pacemaker
  • current pregnancy
  • having no physiological response to FES and/or tSCS.

Recruiting US locations

  • Engineering Building III

    Raleigh, NC 27695

    Site contact: Nitin Sharma, Ph.D. · 919-513-0787 · nsharm23@ncsu.edu

Study contacts (from the official record)

  • Nitin Sharma, Ph.D. · 919-513-0787 · nsharm23@ncsu.edu
All healthy volunteers studies in North Carolina →
Ultrasound for Quantifying Muscle Activation Elicited by Spinal… (NCT07206797) | Bored Studies