Actively Recruiting
Brain Circuitry Changes in Central Poststroke Pain: a Clinical and Neuroimaging Study
Led by Insel Gruppe AG, University Hospital Bern · Updated on 2026-05-01
88
Participants Needed
1
Research Sites
267 weeks
Total Duration
On this page
AI-Summary
What this Trial Is About
Central poststroke pain (CPP) is estimated to affect up to 10% of stroke patients and is one of the most difficult-to-treat conditions with a detrimental effect on patient's quality of life. So far, no drug has proven efficient to alleviate CPP and neuromodulation approaches including Deep Brain Stimulation (DBS) and motor-cortex stimulation have yielded mixed results with only a few patients experiencing long-term pain relief. To date, little is known about the pathophysiology of CPP. There is at present little evidence for a clear association between the specific location of lesions, clinical manifestation and phenomenology of pain as well as treatment response of CPP patients. Furthermore, the time delay between stroke occurrence and CPP occurrence is highly variable and the fact, that it is not immediate in the great majority of patients suggests that other factors contribute to the development of CPP. These factors have not been identified yet.
CONDITIONS
Official Title
Brain Circuitry Changes in Central Poststroke Pain: a Clinical and Neuroimaging Study
Who Can Participate
Eligibility Criteria
You may qualify if you...
- Patients with a haemorrhagic or ischemic stroke affecting the somatosensory system confirmed by CT or MRI and clinical criteria
- Patient age between 18 and 75 years
- Signed written informed consent
- Healthy volunteers aged 18 to 75 years with signed informed consent
You will not qualify if you...
- Secondary stroke due to cerebral vascular malformation or tumor
- Aphasic syndromes or impaired verbal communication, complete sensory-motor hemi-neglect that restricts pain reporting or cooperation during sensory testing
- Severe stroke with NIHSS score greater than 14 or Modified Rankin Scale score greater than 3
- History of severe myelopathy or polyneuropathy with sensory deficits and neuropathic pain
- Large stroke size involving internal carotid artery occlusion or multiple main cerebral artery territories
- Contraindications for 7T MRI such as metallic implants, tattoos, or claustrophobia
- Pregnancy in women under 45 years old
- Pregnancy and breastfeeding for healthy volunteers
AI-Screening
AI-Powered Screening
Complete this quick 3-step screening to check your eligibility
Trial Site Locations
Total: 1 location
1
Dep. of Neurosurgery, Bern University Hospital
Bern, Switzerland, 3000
Actively Recruiting
Research Team
A
Andreas Nowacki, MD
CONTACT
C
Claudio Pollo, MD
CONTACT
How is the study designed?
Study Type
INTERVENTIONAL
Masking
NONE
Allocation
NON_RANDOMIZED
Model
PARALLEL
Primary Purpose
BASIC_SCIENCE
Number of Arms
3
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