An interventional study of Transcutaneous Electrical Stimulation at Jing-Well Acupoints and Transcutaneous Sham Electrical Stimulation at Jing-Well Acupoints in Post-Stroke Cognitive Impairment (PSCI), Ischemic Stroke and Cognitive Dysfunction, Cognitive Disorder, sponsored by First Teaching Hospital of Tianjin University of Traditional Chinese Medicine. Recruiting at 1 site in China. Open to participants aged 35 Years to 80 Years. Per ClinicalTrials.gov, last updated 2026-07-30.
Sponsored by First Teaching Hospital of Tianjin University of Traditional Chinese Medicine · Not applicable, Interventional, and Treatment
This study evaluates a non-invasive electrical stimulation therapy applied to specific acupoints on the fingers (called Jing-Well points) to improve thinking and memory problems after stroke.
Purpose: Many stroke survivors develop cognitive difficulties (problems with memory, attention, and decision-making). Current treatments are limited. This study tests whether gentle electrical stimulation to hand acupoints can improve these symptoms.
Who can participate: Adults aged [35-80] who have had an ischemic stroke and now have mild to moderate cognitive impairment.
What happens: Participants will be randomly assigned to receive either (1) active electrical stimulation to hand Jing-Well points, (2) sham (fake) stimulation. Treatment will last 4 weeks, 6 sessions per week, each 30 minutes, with a stimulation frequency of 10 Hz and intensity adjusted to each participant's tolerance. Cognitive tests and brain imaging will be done before and after treatment.
Potential benefits: Participants may experience improved cognitive function. The study will also help researchers understand how this therapy works in the brain.
Risks: The electrical stimulation may cause mild tingling or skin irritation at the electrode sites. Brain imaging is non-invasive and safe. All procedures will be performed by trained professionals.
2,612 studies on the registry are indexed under Ischemic Stroke; 971 are open to participants now.
This study's planned enrollment of 70 is below the median of 120 across 1,776 interventional studies indexed under Ischemic Stroke.
Browse Ischemic Stroke studies →First Teaching Hospital of Tianjin University of Traditional Chinese Medicine is the lead sponsor of 15 studies on the registry; 11 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:
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.
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.
Before you join, the study team explains what taking part involves — its purpose, what happens, the risks and possible benefits — and answers your questions, so you can decide freely. Consent is usually recorded on a form (the informed consent form, ICF) signed by you or, where the law allows, by someone legally authorised to decide for you.
You can keep asking questions during the study, you are told of new information that matters, and you can choose to leave at any time.
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.
Explained by clinicaltrials.gg, not part of the registry record. The study team decides who can take part.
Informed consent
Before you join, the study team explains what taking part involves — its purpose, what happens, the risks and possible benefits — and answers your questions, so you can decide freely. Consent is usually recorded on a form (the informed consent form, ICF) signed by you or, where the law allows, by someone legally authorised to decide for you.
You can keep asking questions during the study, you are told of new information that matters, and you can choose to leave at any time.
Explained by clinicaltrials.gg, not part of the registry record. The study team decides who can take part.
Participants receive transcutaneous electrical stimulation at hand Jing-Well acupoints (Shaoze SI1, Shangyang LI1, Zhongchong PC9, Guanchong SJ1, Shaochong HT9, and Dadun LR1) using a portable stimulator. Stimulation parameters: 10 Hz square wave, pulse width 320 μs, intensity adjusted to individual tolerance (typically 0-1 mA), 30 minutes per session, 6 sessions per week for 4 consecutive weeks (24 sessions total).
Device: Transcutaneous Electrical Stimulation at Jing-Well Acupoints
Participants receive sham transcutaneous electrical stimulation at hand Jing-Well acupoint locations using an identical-appearing device with the same electrode placement pattern as the active group. The device delivers ineffective stimulation (0 Hz, no current output) while maintaining identical visual and tactile feedback. Sessions follow the same schedule as the active group: 30 minutes per session, 6 sessions per week for 4 consecutive weeks (24 sessions total).
Device: Transcutaneous Sham Electrical Stimulation at Jing-Well Acupoints
Device-based transcutaneous electrical stimulation (TES) delivered to six hand Jing-Well acupoints: Shaoze (SI1), Shangyang (LI1), Zhongchong (PC9), Guanchong (SJ1), Shaochong (HT9), and Dadun (LR1). A custom-designed portable electrical stimulator (model YM-JX-V01, manufactured by Yimai Artificial Intelligence Medical Technology (Tianjin) Co., Ltd.) is used with disposable self-adhesive reference electrodes (4 × 4 cm) and stimulation electrodes (diameter 5 mm). Stimulation parameters: square wave, frequency 10 Hz, pulse width 320 μs, intensity individually titrated to sensory threshold (typically 0-1 mA), session duration 30 minutes. Treatment schedule: 6 sessions per week (Monday-Saturday) for 4 consecutive weeks, totaling 24 sessions. Electrodes are placed bilaterally at the designated acupoints according to WHO Standard Acupuncture Point Locations.
Device-based sham transcutaneous electrical stimulation (TES) delivered to six hand Jing-Well acupoints: Shaoze (SI1), Shangyang (LI1), Zhongchong (PC9), Guanchong (SJ1), Shaochong (HT9), and Dadun (LR1). A custom-designed portable electrical stimulator with open-circuit design (model YM-JX-V01, manufactured by Yimai Artificial Intelligence Medical Technology (Tianjin) Co., Ltd.) is used with disposable self-adhesive reference electrodes (4 × 4 cm) and stimulation electrodes (diameter 5 mm). The device delivers ineffective stimulation (0 Hz, no current output) while maintaining identical visual and tactile feedback. Sessions follow the same schedule as the active group: 30 minutes per session, 6 sessions per week for 4 consecutive weeks (24 sessions total). Electrodes are placed bilaterally at the designated acupoints according to WHO Standard Acupuncture Point Locations.
MoCA（Montreal Cognitive Assessment)
Time frame: From enrollment to the end of treatment at 4 weeks
Mini-Mental State Examination（MMSE）
Time frame: From enrollment to the end of treatment at 4 weeks
Vascular Dementia Assessment Scale-cognitive subscale（VaDAS-cog ）
Time frame: From enrollment to the end of treatment at 4 weeks
Activities of Daily Living Scale（ADL）
Time frame: From enrollment to the end of treatment at 4 weeks
Whole-brain frequency band absolute and relative power derived from resting-state electroencephalography (EEG)
Resting-state EEG signals will be acquired. Absolute power and relative power of multiple frequency bands (delta, theta, alpha, beta) across the whole brain will be quantified to reflect cortical electrical activity.
Time frame: From enrollment to the end of treatment at 4 weeks
Concentration changes of oxygenated hemoglobin (HbO) and deoxygenated hemoglobin (HbR) measured by functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS)
Prefrontal cortical hemodynamic signals will be acquired via resting-state functional near-infrared spectroscopy. Concentration changes of oxygenated hemoglobin (HbO) and deoxygenated hemoglobin (HbR) will be quantified to evaluate cerebral hemodynamic function.
Time frame: From enrollment to the end of treatment at 4 weeks
C-Reactive Protein
Time frame: From enrollment to the end of treatment at 4 weeks
Folic Acid / Folate
Time frame: From enrollment to the end of treatment at 4 weeks
Homocysteine（Hcy）
Time frame: From enrollment to the end of treatment at 4 weeks
Vitamin B12 / Cobalamin
Time frame: From enrollment to the end of treatment at 4 weeks
Plan to share: No
Start is estimated for Aug 2026; primary completion for Mar 2027, 7 months later.
Of 572 non-industry interventional studies with no phase under Ischemic Stroke, half reached primary completion within 28 months of starting (the median), counting those still running; a quarter within 14 and three quarters within 48. This study's planned 7 months is below that.
Counting every sponsor, half of 653 studies reached it within 27 months; a quarter within 14 and three quarters within 48.
How these figures are worked out, and which studies are left out of them.
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First Teaching Hospital of Tianjin University of Traditional Chinese Medicine