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Not yet recruitingNCT07127016Updated Sep 30, 2026

Mindfulness in Nonflaccid Facial Paralysis

An interventional study of Mindfulness Sessions and No Mindfulness Sessions in Facial Paralysis, sponsored by Wake Forest University Health Sciences. Not yet recruiting at 1 site in United States. Open to participants aged 18 Years and older. Per ClinicalTrials.gov, last updated 2026-09-30.

Sponsored by Wake Forest University Health Sciences · Not applicable, Interventional, and Supportive care

Updated Sep 30, 2026Start date movedPrimary completion moved+1 moreGo to Updates ↓
Phase
Not applicable
Study type
Interventional
Enrollment
24
Allocation
Randomized
Ages
18 Years and older
Sex
All
01

Study summary

The purpose of this study is to learn more about how mindfulness techniques can help reduce anxiety, depression and body image disturbance as well as improve synkinesis in individuals with non-flaccid facial paralysis.

Read the detailed description

This study will utilize a prospective randomized two-arm intervention design to assess the effects of mindfulness on patients with non-flaccid facial paralysis. Patients will either be randomized to the normal standard of care Physical Therapy intervention for 8 weeks, or Physical therapy and 8 sessions of mindfulness for 8 weeks. The patients randomized to the mindfulness intervention will undergo 8 sessions of mindfulness prior to completing their physical therapy session. These mindfulness interventions will be recordings administered through a phone or computer, through mindfulsynkinesis.com. Mindfulness scripts were created using Open Network materials and verified by a medical doctor and physical therapist trained in Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction. Each mindfulness session will take 5-10 minutes and will be completed once weekly, immediately prior to their physical therapy sessions.

02

Conditions studied

  • Facial Paralysis

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Keywords

  • non-flaccid facial paralysis
  • synkinesis
  • mindfulness
03

In context

Facial Paralysis

81 studies on the registry are indexed under Facial Paralysis; 28 are open to participants now.

This study's planned enrollment of 24 is below the median of 50 across 59 interventional studies indexed under Facial Paralysis.

Browse Facial Paralysis studies →

Lead sponsor

Wake Forest University Health Sciences is the lead sponsor of 1,351 studies on the registry; 201 are open to participants now.

Of its 332 completed or terminated interventional studies of FDA-regulated products, 251 (76%) have results posted.

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

04

Who can participate

Ages eligible
18 Years and older
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

- Diagnosed with non-flaccid facial paralysis (NFFP) due to Bell's Palsy, Ramsay Hunt syndrome, Lyme disease, or post-acoustic neuroma resection, at least 8 months from the initial diagnosis

Exclusion criteria

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Received treatments such as botox or physical therapy for facial paralysis
  • History of or facial surgery
Terms in these criteria, in plain language(1)

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.

Cancer (malignancy)

Malignancy means cancer. Criteria about another or earlier malignancy ask whether you have had a different cancer, usually within a set number of years.

Some are commonly allowed, such as treated skin cancers other than melanoma and early cancers removed completely — check the exceptions this study lists.

05

Study design

Phase
Not applicable
Primary purpose
Supportive care
Allocation
Randomized
Intervention model
Parallel assignment
Masking
None (open label)
Enrollment
24 participants (estimated)

Study arms

  • Experimental
    Mindfulness Sessions

    8 sessions of mindfulness prior to completing their physical therapy session

    Behavioral: Mindfulness Sessions

  • Active comparator
    No Mindfulness Sessions

    Standard of care no mindfulness sessions

    Behavioral: No Mindfulness Sessions

Interventions

  • BehavioralMindfulness Sessions

    8 sessions of mindfulness prior to completing their physical therapy session. Each mindfulness session will take 5-10 minutes and will be completed once weekly, immediately prior to their physical therapy sessions. Mindfulness prompts will focus on self-reflection, relaxation, body scanning and being present.

  • BehavioralNo Mindfulness Sessions

    Standard of care physical therapy without mindfulness sessions.

06

What researchers measure

Primary outcomes

  1. Facial Clinimetric Evaluation Scale (FaCE)

    15 items rated on a 5-point Likert scale where 1 corresponds to the lowest level of function and 5 corresponds to the highest level of function. The items are categorized into 6 domains: facial movement, facial comfort, oral function, eye comfort, lacrimal control and social function with each domain being scored out of a total of 100 where 0 is the worst possible score to 100 being the best. The mean derived from all domains will determine the total score (out of 100).

    Time frame: Baseline

  2. Facial Clinimetric Evaluation Scale (FaCE)

    15 items rated on a 5-point Likert scale where 1 corresponds to the lowest level of function and 5 corresponds to the highest level of function. The items are categorized into 6 domains: facial movement, facial comfort, oral function, eye comfort, lacrimal control and social function with each domain being scored out of a total of 100 where 0 is the worst possible score to 100 being the best. The mean derived from all domains will determine the total score (out of 100).

    Time frame: Week 8

  3. Facial Clinimetric Evaluation Scale (FaCE)

    15 items rated on a 5-point Likert scale where 1 corresponds to the lowest level of function and 5 corresponds to the highest level of function. The items are categorized into 6 domains: facial movement, facial comfort, oral function, eye comfort, lacrimal control and social function with each domain being scored out of a total of 100 where 0 is the worst possible score to 100 being the best. The mean derived from all domains will determine the total score (out of 100).

    Time frame: Week 16

  4. Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS)

    14-item questionnaire measuring anxiety and depression levels. Total score range is 0-21 with higher score indicating higher likelihood of anxiety/depression.

    Time frame: Baseline

  5. Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS)

    14-item questionnaire measuring anxiety and depression levels. Total score range is 0-21 with higher score indicating higher likelihood of anxiety/depression.

    Time frame: Week 8

  6. Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS)

    14-item questionnaire measuring anxiety and depression levels. Total score range is 0-21 with higher score indicating higher likelihood of anxiety/depression.

    Time frame: Week 16

  7. Synkinesis Assessment Questionnaire (SAQ)

    9-item questionnaire assessing patient perceived severity of synkinesis using a five-point scale. Total score ranges from 20-100. High score means a greater perceived severity of synkinesis symptoms, low score means less perceived severity of synkinesis symptoms.

    Time frame: Baseline

  8. Synkinesis Assessment Questionnaire (SAQ)

    9-item questionnaire assessing patient perceived severity of synkinesis using a five-point scale. Total score ranges from 20-100. High score means a greater perceived severity of synkinesis symptoms, low score means less perceived severity of synkinesis symptoms.

    Time frame: Week 8

  9. Synkinesis Assessment Questionnaire (SAQ)

    9-item questionnaire assessing patient perceived severity of synkinesis using a five-point scale. Total score ranges from 20-100. High score means a greater perceived severity of synkinesis symptoms, low score means less perceived severity of synkinesis symptoms.

    Time frame: Week 16

  10. Mindfulness Attention Awareness Scale (MAAS)

    15-item questionnaire to assess a core characteristic of mindfulness and how much you experience mindfulness in everyday life, not just during meditation. Total score range is 15-90. High score indicates more mindful, more likely to be aware of your thoughts, feelings, and sensations in the present moment. Low score indicates less mindful, more distracted or on "automatic pilot."

    Time frame: Baseline

  11. Mindfulness Attention Awareness Scale (MAAS)

    15-item questionnaire to assess a core characteristic of mindfulness and how much you experience mindfulness in everyday life, not just during meditation. Total score range is 15-90. High score indicates more mindful, more likely to be aware of your thoughts, feelings, and sensations in the present moment. Low score indicates less mindful, more distracted or on "automatic pilot."

    Time frame: Week 8

  12. Mindfulness Attention Awareness Scale (MAAS)

    15-item questionnaire to assess a core characteristic of mindfulness and how much you experience mindfulness in everyday life, not just during meditation. Total score range is 15-90. High score indicates more mindful, more likely to be aware of your thoughts, feelings, and sensations in the present moment. Low score indicates less mindful, more distracted or on "automatic pilot."

    Time frame: Week 16

07

Study locations

1 site
08

References and documents

Individual participant data

Plan to share: No

No publications or documents are linked to this record.

09

Timeline

1 registry update since Sep 25, 2026
ElapsedEstimatedEstimated, not yet reachedDate before it movedWhere the date was before it movedSimilar 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

Start is estimated for Apr 2027; primary completion for Apr 2028, 12 months later.

Of 37 interventional studies with no phase under Facial Paralysis, half reached primary completion within 35 months of starting (the median), counting those still running; a quarter within 12 and three quarters within 68. This study's planned 12 months is below that.

Since we started tracking on Sep 25, 2026, the dates moved once, on Sep 30, 2026: start Sep 2026 → Apr 2027, primary completion Jan 2027 → Apr 2028 and completion Jan 2027 → Apr 2028.

Earlier changes are on the record history on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗

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

Registered
Aug 11, 2025
First posted
Aug 17, 2025
StartEst.
Apr 2027was Sep 2026
Primary completionEst.
Apr 2028was Jan 2027
CompletionEst.
Apr 2028was Jan 2027
Last update
Sep 30, 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.
Start date
Sep 2026→Apr 2027
Sep 30, 2026
Primary completion
Jan 2027→Apr 2028
Sep 30, 2026
Study completion
Jan 2027→Apr 2028
Sep 30, 2026
Show all 1 update
  1. Sep 30, 2026
    Start date Sep 2026→Apr 2027
    Primary completion Jan 2027→Apr 2028
    Study completion Jan 2027→Apr 2028

From the registry record's own update history. This site started tracking changes on Sep 25, 2026; for anything earlier, see the record history on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗

10

Registry details

Key details

Study ID
NCT07127016
Responsible party
Sponsor
First posted
Aug 17, 2025
Start date
Apr 2027 (estimated)
Primary completion
Apr 2028 (estimated)
Completion
Apr 2028 (estimated)
Last update
Sep 30, 2026

Study contacts

Joann Bluj, MD
Contact
joann.bluj@advocatehealth.org
570-952-4527
Katherine Gossett, MD
principal investigator · Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist

Oversight

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

Not currently enrolling

This study is not yet recruiting, as verified in Jun 2026. You cannot join it, but the record below documents what was studied.

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