Interest of Combining Speech Therapy With a Non-invasive Brain Stimulation (tDCS) for the Aphasic Patient — Taph  

Aphasia Clinical Trial

Official title: Interest of Combining Speech Therapy With a Non-invasive Brain Stimulation (tDCS) for the Aphasic Patient

Status Recruiting

Clinical Trial Summary

Aphasia is a frequent symptom after a left hemisphere stroke. It has serious impacts on social, family and professional lives. Aphasic patients need to be rehabilitated. To date, no pharmacological treatment being available only speech and language therapy (SLT) can improve patients, but its efficiency is moderate. Several studies have investigated the link between the recovery of language and neural reorganization. tDCs, a noninvasive technology for modulating neural excitability, could potentiate the effects of the SLT. About 25 studies in literature have described beneficial effects of tDCs coupled with SLT on aphasic patients. However to the investigator knowledge the feasibility of tDCs and speech therapy in clinical pathways has never been investigated. That is why the investigator propose to study in real care conditions how SLT proves more efficient on the recovery of language in a discursive assessment when coupled with active stimulation than with placebo stimulation.

Clinical Trial Description

This is a multicenter, cross-over, randomized, controlled and double blind study. 24 patients will be included between November 2015 and November 2017.

During each session of speech and language treatment, aphasics will receive a weak 2 milli amperes (electric) current delivered by a tDCs device for 20 minutes. The stimulation will be either active or placebo. Each stage of the cross over will last three weeks. Patients will be administered the usual number of SLT sessions, no particular therapy being imposed. To evaluate the long-time effects of the therapy, three follow-up measures will be proposed. ;

Study Design

Allocation: Randomized, Endpoint Classification: Efficacy Study, Intervention Model: Crossover Assignment, Masking: Double Blind (Subject, Outcomes Assessor), Primary Purpose: Treatment

Related Conditions & MeSH terms

• Aphasia
• Communication Disorders

• NCT number: NCT02612753
• Study type: Interventional
• Source: Centre d'Investigation Clinique et Technologique 805
• Contact: Philippe AZOUVI, MDPHD
• Phone: 0033147107074
• Email: philippe.azouvi@aphp.fr
• Status: Recruiting
• Phase: N/A
• Start date: November 2015
• Completion date: October 2018