An interventional study of VR + active brain stimulation and VR + sham brain stimulation in Acrophobia, sponsored by Nantes University Hospital. Completed at 1 site in France. Open to participants aged 18 Years to 65 Years, including healthy volunteers. Per ClinicalTrials.gov, last updated 2026-09-14.
Sponsored by Nantes University Hospital · Not applicable, Interventional, and Other
The aim of this study is to assess feasibility, acceptability and efficacy of two VRET (Virtual Reality Exposition Therapy)session associated with either active anodal tDCS or sham tDCS on the ventromedial prefrontal cortex to decrease anxiety related to visual height intolerance
Subjects suffering from visual height intolerance are asked to go in 20 min as height as possible riding in two elevators of adjacents buildings separated by a board they have to cross at each stage.
Inclusion visit:
Session 1 (within 1 to 7 days following Inclusion Visit) and session 2 (within 48 hours following session 1):
End of study visit:
22 studies on the registry are indexed under Acrophobia; none are open to participants now.
This study's enrollment of 28 is below the median of 60 across 22 interventional studies indexed under Acrophobia.
Browse Acrophobia studies →Nantes University Hospital is the lead sponsor of 839 studies on the registry; 195 are open to participants now.
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Go through the criteria one by one — yes, no or not sure — and take the list to your doctor or the study team. Kept in this browser only.
Exclusion Criteria:
Underlined terms in the criteria open these too. Explained by clinicaltrials.gg, not part of the registry record. The study team decides who can take part.
A reason a treatment, test or procedure should not be given to a particular person, such as an allergy, another illness or a medicine they take.
Contraindication
A reason a treatment, test or procedure should not be given to a particular person, such as an allergy, another illness or a medicine they take.
Explained by clinicaltrials.gg, not part of the registry record. The study team decides who can take part.
Exposure to a virtual reality world with active transcranial electric stimulation
Device: VR + active brain stimulation
Exposure to a virtual reality world with sham transcranial electric stimulation
Device: VR + sham brain stimulation
Active Brain stimulation (tDCS) is applied during exposition to virtual reality (20 minutes)
Sham Brain stimulation (tDCS) is applied during exposition to virtual reality (20 minutes)
Change in Subjective Units of Discomfort (SUD) at different heights
Measure by 0 to 100 scale (100 being the most intense fear) subjective units of discomfort of subjects at different heights (corresponding to virtual floor of a flat) and at each visit
Time frame: within 2 weeks
Change in composite score of Stress reactivity and intolerance of heights
Evaluated by psychometric questionnaires : Acrophobia Questionnaire (AQ), Attitude towards Height Questionnaire (ATHQ), Height Interpretation Questionnaire (HIQ), Visual Height Intolerance scale(vHI), State-Trait Anxiety (STAI), Inventory and Clinical Global Impressions (CGI) The results of these questionnaires will be computed to obtain an overall assessment of the change in reactivity to stress. Comparison of results between the 2 arms
Time frame: within one week
Change in physiologic effects
Evaluation of physiologic effects by skin conductance, pulse, salivary cortisol level, eye-tracking. The results of these exams and measures will be computed to obtain an overall assessment of the change in physiologic effects at each visit
Time frame: within 2 weeks
Comparison in composite score of performance in virtual reality
Assessing the performances in virtual reality in both groups at inclusion and endpoints visits, evaluated by * height and number of floor achieved * rating of SUD at each floor * time spent at each floor * Differences in eye behavior (duration of fixations, saccade length ...) and in the deployment of visual attention
Time frame: within 2 weeks
Debriefing
Analysis after sessions of subjective experience and acceptability using explicationy interviews based on micro phenomenology Locating some recurrences and particularity in the phenomenological experience of patients according to the different experimental conditions.
Time frame: within one week
Quality of immersion
Measured by the score to the Igroup Presence Questionnaire
Time frame: at 2 weeks
virtual reality and tDCS tolerance
Measured by the Simulator sickness questionnaire
Time frame: at 2 weeks
Ran from Jun 2018 to primary completion in Jul 2018, 1 month.
Of 11 interventional studies with no phase under Acrophobia, half reached primary completion within 11 months of starting (the median); a quarter within 6 and three quarters within 16. This study's 1 month is below that.
How these figures are worked out, and which studies are left out of them.
This study is completed, as verified in Jul 2018. You cannot join it, but the record below documents what was studied.
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