An interventional study of Continuous theta burst stimulation and Sham continuous theta burst stimulation in Hemispatial Neglect, Visual Neglect and Stroke, sponsored by Luzerner Kantonsspital. Not yet recruiting at 1 site in Switzerland. Open to participants aged 18 Years and older. Per ClinicalTrials.gov, last updated 2026-05-12.
Sponsored by Luzerner Kantonsspital · Not applicable, Interventional, and Treatment
The goal of this clinical trial is to learn if a non-invasive brain stimulation method called continuous theta burst stimulation (cTBS) can improve attention in adults who have hemispatial neglect after stroke. Hemispatial neglect is a common consequence of stroke where a person fails to notice things on one side of their environment and body after brain damage despite having intact sensory organs. Current treatments include physiotherapy, occupational therapy, and visual scanning training.
The main questions it aims to answer are:
Researchers will compare different conditions, cerebellar cTBS, cerebral cTBS and sham cTBS to see which approach best improves visuospatial attention. Sham cTBS looks and feels identical to real stimulation but does not deliver effective magnetic pulses.
Participants, who are already admitted to the neurology and neurorehabilitation ward, will attend four study visits over approximately two weeks, each lasting about one hour. They receive active or sham cTBS at three stimulation sessions, each separated by at least 48 hours. They also have their eye movements recorded using a camera-based eye-tracking system before and after each session and have their brain activity recorded using EEG, a method that measures electrical activity through small electrodes on the scalp. Participation is voluntary. Participants may withdraw at any time without any impact on their regular medical care. The study is conducted at the Neurocenter of Luzerner Kantonsspital, Switzerland, and is funded by the Swiss National Science Foundation (SNF).
66 studies on the registry are indexed under Perceptual Disorders; 21 are open to participants now.
This study's planned enrollment of 60 is above the median of 27 across 52 interventional studies indexed under Perceptual Disorders.
Browse Perceptual Disorders studies →Luzerner Kantonsspital is the lead sponsor of 62 studies on the registry; 23 are open to participants now.
Counted across the registry records on this site, refreshed daily.
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:
Device: Continuous theta burst stimulation
Device: Continuous theta burst stimulation
Device: Continuous theta burst stimulation · Device: Sham continuous theta burst stimulation
cTBS delivered using a MagPro X100 stimulator with a round coil (MC-125, outer radius 60 mm). Protocol: 801 pulses in 267 bursts (3 pulses at 30 Hz, repeated at 6 Hz). Two trains applied with a 15-minute interval. Targets: left posterior inferior cerebellum (PIC; lobules VI-VIII) and left posterior parietal cortex (PPC), localized by MRI-based neuronavigation (BrainSight). Applied at 100% of individual resting motor threshold.
Sham stimulation delivered using the same MagPro X100 stimulator with a sham coil (MC-P-B70), which produces identical acoustic and tactile sensations as the active coil without delivering effective magnetic stimulation. Same protocol and positioning procedure as active cTBS.
Mean Gaze Position (MGP) during Free Visual Exploration (FVE)
MGP reflects the mean horizontal position (x-axis) of all fixations during free viewing of 24 naturalistic images. Recorded using an infrared video-based eye tracking system (EyeLink 1000 Plus; 1000 Hz). A MGP of 0 indicates centered fixation distribution; positive values indicate a rightward bias; negative values indicate a leftward shift. Fixations of 100-2000 ms are included. Assessed immediately before and after each cTBS session.
Time frame: pre-intervention and immediatly after intervention
Electroencephalography (EEG)
64-channel scalp EEG recorded before and after each cTBS session (ActiChamp System, Brain Products). Two analysis approaches: (1) microstate analysis assessing global brain states and connectivity patterns; (2) frequency-specific phase synchronization between left and right hemispheres as a measure of interhemispheric connectivity. Impedance kept below 5 kΩ.
Time frame: pre-intervention and immediatly after intervention
MRI-based structural brain connectivity and lesion mapping
Three neuroimaging analyses: (1) Voxel-based lesion-symptom mapping (VLSM) to examine the relationship between lesion location and magnitude of neglect improvement after cTBS; (2) Tractwise proportion analysis assessing lesioned tract proportions of four pathways of interest (cerebello-thalamo-cortical and interhemispheric callosal connections); (3) Correlational tractography using diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) to identify structural connectivity predictors of cTBS response. MRI acquired using a 3T Siemens Verio scanner with 32-channel head coil (MPRAGE T1: TR/TE = 2240/3.72 ms, voxel size 0.9×0.9×0.9 mm).
Time frame: once at baseline
Additional Free Visual Exploration (FVE) variables
Secondary eye-tracking variables derived from the same FVE session as the primary outcome: number of fixations (left vs. right screen half), exploration time (left vs. right screen half), direction of first saccade, and exploration area. Recorded using the EyeLink 1000 Plus System (SR Research; 1000 Hz).
Time frame: pre-intervention and immediatly after intervention
Plan to share: No
No publications or documents are linked to this record.
Start is estimated for May 2026; primary completion for Apr 2030, 47 months later.
Of 27 interventional studies with no phase under Perceptual Disorders, half reached primary completion within 44 months of starting (the median), counting those still running; a quarter within 19 and three quarters within 134. This study's planned 47 months is close to that.
How these figures are worked out, and which studies are left out of them.
This study is not yet recruiting, as verified in Apr 2026. You cannot join it, but the record below documents what was studied.
Get an email when the registry record changes — status, dates, results — or when someone posts here.
Sign in to followQuestions and observations about this study, from anyone following it. Not medical advice, and not a channel to the study team — their contact details are on the registry record.
Sign in to join the discussion. Reading takes no account; posting does. You choose a display name, and a pseudonym is the default.
Nothing here yet. If you are running this trial, taking part in it, or weighing whether to, this is the place to say so.
Luzerner Kantonsspital