Actively Recruiting
Brain Stimulation to the Hippocampus in Schizophrenia
Led by Stanford University · Updated on 2026-02-27
60
Participants Needed
1
Research Sites
104 weeks
Total Duration
On this page
Sponsors
S
Stanford University
Lead Sponsor
N
National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH)
Collaborating Sponsor
AI-Summary
What this Trial Is About
Schizophrenia - marked by delusions, hallucinations, and cognitive deficits - causes the most disability of any mental health condition, but existing treatments have significant side effect burden and are often ineffective. Disordered neural activity in the hippocampus likely contributes to schizophrenia symptoms, but to develop better therapies we need to understand whether hippocampal activity in schizophrenia can be systematically affected by non-invasive brain stimulation techniques like transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS). This proposal will investigate the use of connectivity-guided theta burst brain stimulation to specifically target hippocampal function in schizophrenia, offering insights into fundamental hippocampal processes, schizophrenia pathophysiology, and potential avenues to use brain stimulation as a therapeutic tool in this devastating illness.
CONDITIONS
Official Title
Brain Stimulation to the Hippocampus in Schizophrenia
Who Can Participate
Eligibility Criteria
You may qualify if you...
- Men and women, ages 18 to 65 years
- Medically intractable epilepsy requiring phase II monitoring (intracranial EEG arms only)
- DSM-V diagnosis of schizophrenia spectrum Axis I disorders including delusional disorder, brief psychotic disorder, schizophreniform disorder, schizophrenia, schizoaffective disorder (non-invasive TMS-EEG arms only)
- Must have intellectual capacity to ensure adequate comprehension of the study and potential risks involved in order to provide informed consent
- No current or history of major neurological disorders other than epilepsy
You will not qualify if you...
- DSM5 diagnosis of intellectual disability
- Significant head injury
- Active suicidal ideation or history of suicide attempt within the past 1 year
- Medical illness affecting brain structure or function, or other uncontrolled or unstable medical condition
- Pregnancy or postpartum (<6 weeks after delivery or miscarriage)
- Inability to provide informed consent
- Active substance abuse other than alcohol or cannabis within the past 1 year
- Psychotic illness with a temporal relation to substance use or head injury
- Those with a contraindication for MRIs or TMS (e.g. implanted metal)
AI-Screening
AI-Powered Screening
Complete this quick 3-step screening to check your eligibility
Trial Site Locations
Total: 1 location
1
Stanford University
Stanford, California, United States, 94305
Actively Recruiting
Research Team
S
Study Team
CONTACT
How is the study designed?
Study Type
INTERVENTIONAL
Masking
SINGLE
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Model
CROSSOVER
Primary Purpose
BASIC_SCIENCE
Number of Arms
4
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