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Not yet recruitingNCT07272954Updated Sep 29, 2026

Effects of Ultrasound-Guided Stellate Ganglion Block and Transcutaneous Auricular Vagus Nerve Stimulation on Sleep Quality After Radical Mastectomy for Breast Cancer

An interventional study of SGB and taVNS in Sleep Disorder (Disorder), sponsored by Affiliated Hospital of Jiaxing University. Not yet recruiting. Open to female participants aged 18 Years to 80 Years. Per ClinicalTrials.gov, last updated 2026-09-29.

Sponsored by Affiliated Hospital of Jiaxing University · Not applicable, Interventional, and Prevention

Phase
Not applicable
Study type
Interventional
Enrollment
136
Allocation
Randomized
Ages
18 Years to 80 Years
Sex
Female
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Study summary

This study aims to design a prospective, randomized, controlled, dual-center, non-inferiority trial to compare the effects of ultrasound-guided sympathetic ganglion block (SGB) and transcutaneous auricular vagus nerve stimulation (taVNS) on sleep quality following radical mastectomy for breast cancer. The objective is to explore whether non-invasive neuromodulation for sleep is non-inferior to invasive neuromodulation. Participants will be randomly assigned to receive either SGB or taVNS treatment. Sleep quality will be assessed using an actigraphy device and sleep scales within four days post-surgery, and the incidence of sleep disturbances will be followed up within 30 days post-surgery.

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Conditions studied

  • Sleep Disorder (Disorder)

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Keywords

  • taVNS
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In context

Sleep Wake Disorders

747 studies on the registry are indexed under Sleep Wake Disorders; 182 are open to participants now.

This study's planned enrollment of 136 is above the median of 66 across 531 interventional studies indexed under Sleep Wake Disorders.

Browse Sleep Wake Disorders studies →

Lead sponsor

Affiliated Hospital of Jiaxing University is the lead sponsor of 17 studies on the registry; 10 are open to participants now.

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

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Who can participate

Ages eligible
18 Years to 80 Years
Sexes eligible
Female
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

  • aged 18-80 years who underwent radical surgery for breast cancer

Exclusion criteria

Exclusion Criteria:

  • 1. Patients with coagulation dysfunction;
  • Patients with suspected regional infection leading to severe nerve damage in the affected limb;
  • Patients with congenital heart disease, coronary artery disease, myocardial infarction, severe cardiac conduction block, or those with implanted cardiac pacemakers;
  • Patients with severe neurological disorders such as cerebral infarction, cerebral hemorrhage, or stroke;
  • Patients with pain, lesions, infections, or unresolved external ear trauma in the area near the external ear;
  • Patients with severe mental illness or a history of substance abuse related to analgesics or psychiatric medications;
  • Patients with allergies to local anesthetics such as lidocaine or ropivacaine, as well as to general anesthetics;
  • Patients and their families who refuse surgical anesthesia and those unable to complete the survey questionnaire.
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.

ASA physical status

The anaesthetists’ scale of health before surgery: I is healthy, II has a mild illness that is under control, III a severe one, IV a severe illness that is a constant threat to life. V and VI are used for the critically ill and for organ donors.

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Study design

Phase
Not applicable
Primary purpose
Prevention
Allocation
Randomized
Intervention model
Parallel assignment
Masking
Triple (Care provider, Investigator, Outcomes assessor)
Enrollment
136 participants (estimated)

Study arms

  • Active comparator
    Stellate Ganglion Block(SGB)

    Before the induction of anesthesia in the operating room, a skilled anesthesiologist performed a SGB under sterile conditions using real-time ultrasound in a blind grouping manner.

    Procedure: SGB

  • Experimental
    transcutaneous vagus nerve stimulation(taVNS)

    Three stimulations of transcutaneous auricular vagus nerve stimulation (taVNS) were administered to the patients

    Device: taVNS

Interventions

  • ProcedureSGB

    Before the induction of anesthesia in the operating room, a skilled anesthesiologist performed a SGB under sterile conditions using real-time ultrasound in a blind grouping manner. The patient was positioned supine with the neck slightly rotated to the left. A linear probe (6-13 MHz) was placed on the neck to clearly visualize the carotid artery, internal jugular vein, vertebral artery, vagus nerve, thyroid gland, esophagus, scalene muscles, and the anterior scalene muscle at the C6 level. Subsequently, a 48mm, 20-gauge needle was inserted in a "plane" direction into the prevertebral fascia of the anterior scalene muscle. After the needle tip penetrated the prevertebral fascia and negative pressure aspiration was confirmed, 3ml of 0.5% ropivacaine was injected, and the diffusion of the local anesthetic was observed under ultrasound guidance.

  • DevicetaVNS

    Three stimulations of transcutaneous auricular vagus nerve stimulation (taVNS) were administered to the patients: ① According to the manufacturer's recommendations and previous studies \[32\], the initial adjustment required electrical stimulation to penetrate the skin barrier. The first intervention was conducted one day prior to the surgery, with an initial electrical stimulation frequency set at 30 Hz and a pulse width of 300 μs. The frequency and pulse width were adjusted based on the individual patient's sensations until the maximum tolerable current stimulation was reached without discomfort, lasting for 30 minutes; ② The second intervention occurred immediately after the patient was connected to the monitoring equipment in the operating room, once their vital signs were confirmed to be within normal ranges. The same stimulation frequency as the first intervention was applied for 30 minutes; ③ The third intervention was administered in the recovery room after the patient's surgery

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What researchers measure

Primary outcomes

  1. Total Sleep Time on the First Night Post-Surgery

    Total Sleep Time Monitored by Actigraphy on the First Night Post-Surgery

    Time frame: the First Night Post-Surgery

Secondary outcomes

  1. Total sleep time from the second to the fourth night post-surgery

    Total sleep time each night from the second to the fourth night post-surgery by Actigraphy

    Time frame: the second to the fourth night post-surgery

  2. Assessment of sleep quality during the first four nights postoperatively

    Assessment of sleep quality using the Richards-Campbell Sleep Questionnaire(RCSQ) sleep questionnaire during the first four nights postoperatively. The total score is 150 points, with the minimum score being 0 points. A higher score indicates better postoperative sleep quality.

    Time frame: during the first four nights postoperatively

  3. sleep quality and the incidence of sleep disturbances on the 30th postoperative day

    On the 30th postoperative day, the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) will be used to assess subjective sleep quality and the incidence of sleep disturbances.The score ranges from 0 to 21 points, with higher scores indicating worse postoperative sleep quality.A score greater than 7 indicates the presence of sleep disturbance.

    Time frame: On the 30th postoperative day

  4. The incidence of all complications and mortality within 72 hours postoperatively

    The incidence of all complications and mortality within 72 hours postoperatively

    Time frame: within 72 hours postoperatively

  5. Quality of Recovery score at 24 hours postoperatively (QoR-15).

    Quality of Recovery score at 24 hours postoperatively (QoR-15). The score ranges from 0 to 150 points, with higher scores indicating better postoperative recovery quality.

    Time frame: at 24 hours postoperatively

07

Study locations

No study locations are listed for this record.

08

References and documents

Individual participant data

Plan to share: Yes

Supporting information: Study protocol

No publications or documents are linked to this record.

09

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

Start is estimated for Dec 2026; primary completion for Dec 2029, 36 months later.

Of 208 non-industry interventional studies with no phase under Sleep Wake Disorders, half reached primary completion within 21 months of starting (the median), counting those still running; a quarter within 7 and three quarters within 40. This study's planned 36 months is above that.

Counting every sponsor, half of 243 studies reached it within 19 months; a quarter within 6 and three quarters within 37.

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

Registered
Nov 22, 2025
First posted
Dec 9, 2025
StartEst.
Dec 1, 2026
Primary completionEst.
Dec 1, 2029
CompletionEst.
Dec 1, 2029
Last update
Sep 29, 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 Sep 29, 2026, before this site started recording changes on Sep 25, 2026. Its history is on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗
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Registry details

Key details

Study ID
NCT07272954
Lead sponsor
Affiliated Hospital of Jiaxing University
Responsible party
Qing-he Zhou (PHD, Affiliated Hospital of Jiaxing University) — Principal investigator
First posted
Dec 9, 2025
Start date
Dec 1, 2026 (estimated)
Primary completion
Dec 1, 2029 (estimated)
Completion
Dec 1, 2029 (estimated)
Last update
Sep 29, 2026

Study contacts

Mingzi An
Contact
anmingzizi@163.com
+8618035193080

Oversight

Data monitoring committee
Yes
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 Sep 2026. You cannot join it, but the record below documents what was studied.

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