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CompletedNCT03465761Updated Mar 20, 2026

Staged Bilateral Exablate Treatment of Medication Refractory Essential Tremor

An interventional study of ExAblate in Essential Tremor, sponsored by InSightec. Completed at 2 sites in 2 countries. Open to participants aged 22 Years to 75 Years. Per ClinicalTrials.gov, last updated 2026-03-20.

Sponsored by InSightec · Not applicable, Interventional, and Treatment

Phase
Not applicable
Study type
Interventional
Enrollment
7
Allocation
Not applicable
Ages
22 Years to 75 Years
Sex
All
01

Study summary

The objective of this prospective, multi-site, single-arm, open-label study is to capture the safety and efficacy (outcome) of bilateral staged Exablate treatment in subjects with bilateral medication-refractory essential tremor (ET). The staged second procedure will be performed at least 9 months after the first side. The benefit of real-time feedback will allow the physician to maximize benefit without jeopardizing safety.

This study is designed as a prospective, open-label, single arm, multi-site study design.

02

Conditions studied

  • Essential Tremor

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Keywords

  • MRgFUS
  • ExAblate
  • Bilateral Essential Tremor
03

In context

Essential Tremor

272 studies on the registry are indexed under Essential Tremor; 75 are open to participants now.

This study's enrollment of 7 is below the median of 25 across 189 interventional studies indexed under Essential Tremor.

Browse Essential Tremor studies →

Lead sponsor

InSightec is the lead sponsor of 84 studies on the registry; 9 are open to participants now.

Counted across the registry records on this site, refreshed daily.

04

Who can participate

Ages eligible
22 Years to 75 Years
Sexes eligible
All
Accepts healthy volunteers
No

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.

Inclusion criteria

  1. Subjects who:

    1. previously underwent Exablate thalamotomy for their essential tremor in a clinical study or in a commercial procedure at least 9 months prior to enrolling in this study for contralateral Exablate thalamotomy
    2. Subjects who would benefit from a bilateral treatment for their essential tremor and would want to undergo a staged bilateral thalamotomy
  2. All subjects must have a complete baseline CRST prior from first Exablate thalamotomy
  3. Men and women age 22 years to 75 years of age.
  4. Minimum score of 24 on or 20 on MMSE
  5. Subjects who are able and willing to give consent and able to attend all study visits
  6. Postural or intention tremor severity score of greater than or equal to 2 in the both upper extremities as measured by the CRST rating scale while on stable medication
  7. Thalamus can be targeted by the Exablate device. The region must be apparent on MRI such that targeting can be performed.
  8. Able to communicate sensations during the Exablate Thalamotomy treatment
  9. Original (before first Exablate procedure) CRST score of 2 or above in any one of the items 16-23 from the Disability subsection of the CRST: speaking, feeding other than liquids, bringing liquids to mouth, hygiene, dressing, writing, working, and social activities.
  10. Subjects on antidepressant medications must be stable for at least 3 months prior to procedure(i.e., no change in medication drug or dosage for 3 months based on historical medical records).
  11. Remains eligible for Exablate treatment with no changes to medical history that would affect Exablate treatment criteria, (e.g., bleeding/coagulation requirements, or new pathology such as infarct, tumor, etc).

Exclusion criteria

Exclusion Criteria:

  1. Subjects with unstable cardiac status
  2. Subjects exhibiting any behavior(s) consistent with ethanol or substance abuse as defined by the criteria outlined in the as manifested by one (or more) of the following occurring within a 12 month period:
  3. Subjects with uncontrollable blood pressure (hypertensive with diastolic BP > 100 on medication)
  4. History of abnormal bleeding and/or coagulopathy, i.e. subjects with risk factors for intraoperative or postoperative bleeding as indicated by: count less than 100,000 per cubic millimeter, a documented clinical coagulopathy, or coagulation studies exceeding the institution's laboratory standard
  5. Receiving anticoagulant (e.g. warfarin) or antiplatelet (e.g. aspirin) therapy within one week of focused ultrasound procedure or drugs known to increase risk or hemorrhage (e.g. Avastin) within one month of focused ultrasound procedure
  6. Active or suspected acute or chronic uncontrolled infection
  7. Individuals who are not able or willing to tolerate the required prolonged stationary supine position during treatment (can be up to 4 hrs of total table time.)
  8. Subjects with life-threatening systemic disease that include but not limited to the following will be excluded from the study participation: , Liver Failure, blood dyscrasias, etc...
  9. Any moderate to severe sensory deficit lasting greater than 30 days after the first Exablate thalamotomy NOTE: Subjects with clinically significant moderate to severe sensory deficit following first Exablate thalamatomy should be excluded even if event resolves within a few months of treatment. This may cause new first thalamotomy subjects to be ineligible for the bilaterally staged treatment.
  10. Moderate to severe cerebellar disturbance (imbalance or ataxia) or presence of moderate or severe hemiparesis NOTE: Subjects with moderate to severe cerebellar disturbance (imbalance or ataxia) or presence of moderate or severe hemiparesis following first Exablate thalamatomy should be excluded even if event resolves within a few months of treatment. This may cause new first thalamotomy subjects to be ineligible for the bilaterally staged treatment.
  11. Any persistent dysphasia/dysarthria, language impairment following first Exablate thalamotomy.

    NOTE: Subjects with significant impairment following first Exablate thalamotomy should be excluded even if event resolves within a few months of treatment. This may cause new first thalamotomy subjects to be ineligible for the bilaterally staged treatment.

  12. Significant reduction in cognitive function since the first thalamotomy. NOTE: Subjects with significant reduction in cognitive function following first Exablate thalamatomy should also be excluded even if event resolves within a few months of treatment. This may cause new first thalamotomy subjects to be not eligible for the bilaterally staged treatment.
  13. Subject is pregnant or breastfeeding.
  14. Subjects who have an overall Skull Density Ratio of less than 0.40 as calculated at screening
Terms in these criteria, in plain language(6)

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.

MMSE and MoCA

Short tests of memory and thinking, each scored out of 30. Lower scores suggest more difficulty; criteria give a range, either to include people with memory problems or to leave them out.

DSM diagnostic criteria

The American Psychiatric Association’s manual of mental health diagnoses. DSM-5 (2013, revised as DSM-5-TR in 2022) replaced DSM-IV, and some studies still name the older edition. “Meets DSM criteria for …” means diagnosed by that edition’s diagnostic criteria, usually by a clinician in an interview.

Platelets

Blood cells that help blood clot. Too few raises the risk of bleeding and bruising. A usual adult range is about 150–400 × 10⁹/L (150,000–400,000 per µL); each lab has its own reference range.

INR, PT and aPTT (clotting tests)

Blood tests of how long blood takes to clot. The INR is the prothrombin time (PT) put on a common scale; about 1 is usual for someone not taking a blood thinner.

Criteria often make an exception for people on a blood thinner such as warfarin, whose INR is raised on purpose.

HIV

The human immunodeficiency virus, which weakens the immune system.

Many studies now accept people whose HIV is controlled on treatment, judged by the viral load and the CD4 count. Check the limits this study sets.

Clinically significant

Judged by the study doctor to matter for your health or for the study. It is a doctor’s decision, so ask the study team if you are unsure whether something counts.

05

Study design

Phase
Not applicable
Primary purpose
Treatment
Allocation
Not applicable
Intervention model
Single group
Masking
None (open label)
Enrollment
7 participants (actual)

Study arms

  • Experimental
    ExAblate 4000 System

    ExAblate treatment of Bilateral Essential Tremor

    Device: ExAblate

Interventions

  • DeviceExAblate

    Bilateral side treatment of Essential Tremor

06

What researchers measure

Primary outcomes

  1. Clinical Rating Scale for Tremor (CRST)

    The CRST is a standard tremor rating scale which measures subjects' tremor (Part A), motor Function (Part B), and Activities of Daily Living (Part C). Scores range from 0-4 with 0 being no tremor.

    Time frame: Baseline through Month 12 after First and Second Treatment

  2. Incidence of Device and Procedure related Adverse Events

    All AEs will be reported and categorized by investigators in relation to the device or procedure, disease or unrelated to the device or procedures and categorized by first or second Exablate thalamotomy.

    Time frame: Treatment through Month 12 after Second Treatment

07

Study locations

2 sites
  • HM CINAC
    Móstoles, Madrid, Spain
  • Imperial College
    London, SE1 6LH, United Kingdom
08

Timeline

Tracking since Sep 25, 2026
ElapsedEstimatedEstimated, not yet reachedSimilar studies: half by the dot; the band is the middle halfHalf of similar studies reached it by the dot; the band is the middle half, from a quarter to three quarters

Ran from Jan 2019 to primary completion in Dec 2021, 35 months.

Of 95 interventional studies with no phase under Essential Tremor, half reached primary completion within 45 months of starting (the median), counting those still running; a quarter within 19 and three quarters within 93. This study's 35 months is below that.

How these figures are worked out, and which studies are left out of them.

Registered
Mar 8, 2018
First posted
Mar 14, 2018
StartActual
Jan 3, 2019
Primary completionActual
Dec 7, 2021
CompletionActual
Nov 17, 2025
Last update
Mar 20, 2026
What these dates mean
Start.
When the first participant enrolled; while estimated, when the study expects to open to recruitment.
Primary completion.
When the last participant was examined or treated to collect data for the study's main question, its primary outcome. A study that stopped early gives the date its data collection stopped.
Completion.
When the last participant's last visit took place, for every outcome, secondary ones and side effects included: the end of the study. Often later than primary completion, sometimes the same day.
Actual and Est.
Actual means the registry says the date has happened. Est. (estimated) is a date the sponsor plans or expects. It can still move, and the sponsor is expected to change it to actual once it has passed.
No changes since tracking began. The registry record was last updated on Mar 20, 2026, before this site started recording changes on Sep 25, 2026. Its history is on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗
09

Registry details

Key details

Study ID
NCT03465761
Lead sponsor
InSightec
Responsible party
Sponsor
First posted
Mar 14, 2018
Start date
Jan 3, 2019
Primary completion
Dec 7, 2021
Completion
Nov 17, 2025
Last update
Mar 20, 2026

Oversight

Data monitoring committee
Yes
FDA-regulated drug
No
FDA-regulated device
No
View the source record on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗

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This study is completed, as verified in Mar 2026. You cannot join it, but the record below documents what was studied.

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