ClinicalTrials.gg
RecruitingNCT04354077Updated Aug 31, 2026

Deep Brain Stimulation Effects In Patients With Opioid Use Disorder

An interventional study of DBS of the NAc in Opioid-use Disorder, sponsored by Allegheny Singer Research Institute (also known as Allegheny Health Network Research Institute). Recruiting at 1 site in United States. Open to participants aged 22 Years to 65 Years. Per ClinicalTrials.gov, last updated 2026-08-31.

Sponsored by Allegheny Singer Research Institute (also known as Allegheny Health Network Research Institute) · Not applicable, Interventional, and Treatment

From the registry’s dates

  • Started Feb 2022; still recruiting 4 years 9 months later.
Phase
Not applicable
Study type
Interventional
Enrollment
3
Allocation
Not applicable
Ages
22 Years to 65 Years
Sex
All
01

Study summary

This is a pilot study to evaluate the safety and efficacy of deep brain stimulation (DBS) of the nucleus accumbens (NAc) as adjunctive treatment for treatment-refractory opioid use disorder. This study will include 3 individuals with opioid use disorder and relapsing opioid use despite active participation in a drug addiction treatment program.

Read the detailed description

Three (N = 3) subjects with treatment refractory opioid use disorder will receive bilateral DBS implants in the NAc using the Abbott Medical Infinity DBS system. The primary outcome of this study is to demonstrate the safety of bilateral NAc DBS in patients with treatment-refractory opioid use disorder. Secondary outcomes include time to relapse, remission of opioid use, and change in opioid craving scores. Other secondary outcomes will include the following: Hamilton Depression Scale (HDS), neurophysiological tests, body weight and biochemical markers of health and nutrition. If effective, DBS may reduce opioid use and opioid relapse in people with opioid use disorder who may continue to display relapse despite ongoing multidisciplinary standard of care. DBS brain electrode implantation and implantation of the IPGs and extension wires will be done in the operating room and will require the subject to be admitted post-operatively for an overnight stay. Two weeks after the DBS operation, subjects will undergo systematic testing each of the quadripolar contacts and formal programming. Subsequent parameter settings will be changed at routine outpatient visits based on clinical effects. Standard of care can consist of methadone or buprenorphine maintenance treatment provided by an addiction specialist.

02

Conditions studied

  • Opioid-use Disorder

Keywords

  • Deep Brain Stimulation
  • Addiction
  • Nucleus Accumbens
03

In context

Opioid-Related Disorders

1,472 studies on the registry are indexed under Opioid-Related Disorders; 290 are open to participants now.

This study's planned enrollment of 3 is below the median of 63 across 1,166 interventional studies indexed under Opioid-Related Disorders.

Browse Opioid-Related Disorders studies →

Lead sponsor

Allegheny Singer Research Institute (also known as Allegheny Health Network Research Institute) is the lead sponsor of 49 studies on the registry; 20 are open to participants now.

Of its 9 completed or terminated interventional studies of FDA-regulated products, 4 (44%) have results posted.

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

04

Who can participate

Ages eligible
22 Years to 65 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. Male and females age ≥ 22 years with diagnosis of opioid use disorder (OUD) based on , fifth edition (DSM-5) with at least a 5-year history
  2. OUD must be the primary disorder
  3. History of ongoing or previous opioid use, relapse, and/or cravings, despite attempts at, or attendance in, at least two different treatment modalities. These modalities may include: Comprehensive Opioid Addiction Treatment (COAT), intensive outpatient COAT, residential treatment, inpatient treatment, alternative to intensive outpatient programs, Drug Dependence Unit programs, medication-assisted treatment (MAT), medication assisted recovery (MAR), inpatient or outpatient rehabilitation, detox programs, Narcotics Anonymous, individual or group therapy, Partial Hospitalization Programs (PHP), Sober living homes, or similar interventions.
  4. Self-reports ongoing opioid cravings.
  5. Has completed a neuro-psychological evaluation to the satisfaction of a neuropsychologist
  6. Has completed a psychiatric evaluation to the satisfaction of a psychiatrist
  7. Has had a brain MRI performed and reviewed by neurosurgeon with no for DBS procedure identified
  8. count > 125,000 per cubic mm and (PT) and partial thromboplastin time (PTT) within normal limits
  9. Negative blood cultures to rule out bacteremia

Exclusion criteria

Exclusion criteria

  1. Prior brain surgery contraindicating Deep Brain Stimulation (DBS) surgery, including procedures that required a craniotomy (e.g., brain tumor removal, trauma or pressure relief, hemorrhage, or clot evacuation). Patients with other brain surgery history will be considered and approved at the discretion of the Principal Investigator (PI).
  2. Baseline assessment on the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HAMD) of greater than 17 or moderate risk of suicide based upon a score of 3 or greater on the Columbia Suicide Severity Scale, unless clinical judgment indicates that the individual is appropriate for inclusion despite these scores.
  3. History of uncontrolled or persistent seizures
  4. Suspected dementia based on neuropsychological screening or (MMSE) Score \< 25
  5. for MRI:

    1. Presence of implanted electrical stimulation device or other implanted metal devices (excluding dental braces).
    2. Claustrophobia
    3. Body weight exceeding limit of the machine (180 kg/400 lb)
  6. Females who are pregnant or nursing. Female subjects of must have a negative pregnancy test during the pre-op phase and must agree to utilize adequate throughout the trial and for at least 30 days following trial completion.
  7. Coagulopathy secondary to chronic need for anticoagulation medicine (e.g. warfarin) or anti- medication (e.g. aspirin or clopidogrel)
  8. Diagnosis of neurological disorders (e.g. multiple sclerosis, Parkinson's disease, and stroke)
  9. Severe brain atrophy or presence of subdural hygromas or subdural hematomas on brain MRI
  10. Any evidence of underlying endocarditis.
  11. Primary language other than English
  12. Have any other medical condition that, in the opinion of the Investigator, makes the subject unsuitable for enrollment.
Terms in these criteria, in plain language(7)

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

Childbearing potential

Able to become pregnant: from the first period until menopause, unless permanently unable to through surgery (removal of the womb, or of both ovaries or both fallopian tubes).

Criteria for people of childbearing potential usually ask for a negative pregnancy test and for contraception during the study and for a time after it.

Contraception

Ways of preventing pregnancy. “Highly effective” methods fail less than 1% of the time a year when used correctly — for example an IUD or an implant.

Criteria usually say which methods count and how long to keep using them after the last dose, sometimes for male participants too. Some studies accept a partner’s vasectomy if it was confirmed successful and that person is the participant’s only sexual partner.

05

Study design

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

Study arms

  • Experimental
    NAc DBS

    Subjects will receive bilateral DBS of the NAc

    Device: DBS of the NAc

Interventions

  • DeviceDBS of the NAc

    Deep Brain Stimulation of the Nucleus Accumbens

    Also known as: Abbott Infinity DBS lead, model 6173ANS, Abbott Infinity DBS extension, model 6371ANS, Abbott Infinity DBS implantable pulse generator, model 6660ANS, Abbott Infinity DBS guardian burr hole cap, model 6010ANS, Abbott Infinity DBS patient controller, model 6883ANS, Abbott Infinity DBS clinician programmer, model 3872ANS

06

What researchers measure

Primary outcomes

  1. Opioid use/abstinence

    Percentage of subjects achieving opioid abstinence

    Time frame: 6 months

  2. Opioid use/abstinence

    Percentage of subjects achieving opioid abstinence

    Time frame: 1 year post-surgery

Secondary outcomes

  1. Changes in biochemical markers of health

    Biochemical battery of tests. Blood draw for plasma CBC, lytes, BUN, creatinine, Glutamate dehydrogenase (GLDH), gamma-glutamyltransferase (GGT), aspartate aminotransferase (AST), alanine aminotransferase (ALT), erythrocyte mean corpuscular volume (MCV), carbohydrate-deficient transferrin (CDT)

    Time frame: Baseline, 6, 12 and 24 months

  2. Changes in biochemical markers of nutrition

    Biochemical battery of tests. Blood draw for plasma, pre-albumin, folate, B12, calcium, magnesium, iron

    Time frame: Baseline, 6, 12 and 24 months

  3. Depression score

    Hamilton Depression Scale: There are 17 items by which an assessor will select one cue which best characterizes the patient (0-4). All items are added up for a total score, where lower numbers are indicative of a normal score and higher numbers are indicative of worse depression.

    Time frame: Baseline, 3, 6, 9, 12 and 24 months post-surgery

  4. Quality of life measure

    Flanagan QOL scale: Subjects will assign a rank score to 16 items. Rankings go from 7 to 1, where 7 is a better outcome and 1 is the worst outcome. The scale is as follows: 7=Delighted, 6=Pleased, 5=Mostly Satisfied, 4=Mixed, 3=Mostly Dissatisfied, 2=Unhappy, 1=Terrible. All rankings are totaled for a final score.

    Time frame: Baseline, 3, 6, 9, 12 and 24 months post-surgery

Other outcomes

  1. Primary Safety Objective - Complication rates

    Adverse events

    Time frame: 12 months

07

Study locations

1 of 1 sites recruiting
  • AHN Allegheny General Hospital
    Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15212, United States
    Recruiting
    • Clinical Trials Contact · Contactclinicaltrials@ahn.org
    • Nestor Tomycz, MD · Principal investigator
    • Donald Whiting, MD · Sub investigator
    • Carol Schramke, PhD · Sub investigator
    • Amanda Webb, PA · Sub investigator
    • Stuart Fisk, CRNP · Sub investigator
    • Heather Richards, MD · Sub investigator
    • Elizabeth Cuevas, MD · Sub investigator
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

Started Feb 2022 (actual). Primary completion is estimated for Jan 2029, 83 months after the start.

Of 464 non-industry interventional studies with no phase under Opioid-Related Disorders, half reached primary completion within 29 months of starting (the median), counting those still running; a quarter within 14 and three quarters within 47. This study's planned 83 months is above that.

Counting every sponsor, half of 495 studies reached it within 29 months; a quarter within 13 and three quarters within 46.

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

Registered
Apr 2, 2020
First posted
Apr 21, 2020
StartActual
Feb 7, 2022
Primary completionEst.
Jan 2029
CompletionEst.
Jan 2030
Last update
Aug 31, 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 Aug 31, 2026, before this site started recording changes on Sep 25, 2026. Its history is on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗
09

Registry details

Key details

Study ID
NCT04354077
Lead sponsor
Allegheny Singer Research Institute (also known as Allegheny Health Network Research Institute)
Collaborators
Abbott
Responsible party
Nestor Tomycz (Principal Investigator, Allegheny Singer Research Institute (also known as Allegheny Health Network Research Institute)) — Principal investigator
First posted
Apr 21, 2020
Start date
Feb 7, 2022
Primary completion
Jan 2029 (estimated)
Completion
Jan 2030 (estimated)
Last update
Aug 31, 2026

Study contacts

Nestor Tomycz, MD
Contact
nestor.tomycz@ahn.org
412-359-6200
Donald Whiting, MD
Contact
donald.whiting@ahn.org
412-359-6200
Nestor Tomycz, MD
principal investigator · Allegheny Health Network

Oversight

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

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