Recruiting
Phase 2

TMS & Language Therapy

Sponsor:

University of Pennsylvania

Code:

NCT06842745

Conditions

Aphasia

Stroke

Aphasia Following Cerebral Infarction

Aphasia, Acquired

Eligibility Criteria

Sex: All

Age: 40 - 70+

Healthy Volunteers: Not accepted

Interventions

Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS)

Speech-Language Therapy (SLT)

Study Details

Brief summary:

The goal of this clinical trial is to determine if Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS) combined with Speech-Language Therapy (SLT) is an effective treatment for mild aphasia in persons with chronic stroke.

The main questions this study aims to answer are:

1. Can TMS combined with SLT improve conversational speech and comprehension?
2. Can we identify specific behavioral and biological characteristics that would benefit most from the TMS and SLT treatment?

Researchers will compare real TMS to sham (fake) TMS to see whether TMS can treat post-stroke mild aphasia.

Participants will:

  • Complete a screening and medical intake to determine eligibility
  • Undergo a MRI
  • Participate in 10 consecutive sessions (Monday-Friday) of TMS and SLT treatment
  • Complete follow-up assessments 2 and 4 months after treatment

Conditions

Aphasia

Stroke

Aphasia Following Cerebral Infarction

Aphasia, Acquired

Study ID

NCT06842745

Start date

Feb 11, 2025

Status verified date

Mar, 2026

Completion date

Aug 31, 2026

Anticipated

Primary completion date

Aug 31, 2026

Anticipated

Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

Sex: All

Age: 40 - 70+

Healthy Volunteers: Not accepted

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Left Hemisphere stroke
  • Stroke occurred more than 6 months ago
  • Mild Aphasia (WAB AQ score > 85)
  • Proficient in English

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Ongoing substance or alcohol abuse
  • Other neurological disorders, beside stroke (i.e. dementia, traumatic brain injury, multiple sclerosis)
  • Active psychiatric disorders (i.e. bipolar disorder, schizophrenia)
  • Pacemaker or cardiac defibrillator
  • Diagnosis of tinnitus
  • Epilepsy, or seizure in the past 6 months

Study Design

Enrollment

24 participants

Anticipated

Allocation

Randomized

Intervention Model

Parallel Assignment

Primary purpose

Treatment

Interventions and Outcome Measures

Arms

experimental: Real TMS

Some of our participants will be randomized to the real treatment arm where they will receive 10 sessions of real TMS paired with speech-language therapy.

sham comparator: Fake TMS

Some of our participants will be randomized to the sham treatment arm where they will receive 10 sessions of fake TMS paired with speech-language therapy.

Interventions

Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS)

TMS, is a form of non-invasive brain stimulation, that uses magnetic pulses to stimulate specific areas of the brain. In this study we will utilize theta-burst stimulation which uses a higher frequency pulse of 50 Hz delivered for 40 seconds for a total of 600 pulses.

Speech-Language Therapy (SLT)

Our SLT protocol draws from two theories and evidence-based cognitive-linguistic frameworks: (1) conversational alignment, which engages priming of lexical and syntactic structures through dialogue and conversation and (2) increased tolerance of memory load in the context of sentence repetition and dialogue tasks. Administration of these tasks will abide by principles of constraint-induced language therapy, i.e., intense treatment schedule and verbal responding only.

All participants will receive SLT.

Primary outcome measure

  • Sentence Processing [ Time Frame: From baseline to 4 months post-intervention ]

Central Contacts and Locations

Central contacts

Harris Drachman, MS

215-964-2502harris.drachman@pennmedicine.upenn.edu

Daniela Sacchetti, MS

danielas@pennmedicine.upenn.edu

Locations

University of Pennsylvania

Recruiting

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States, 19014

More Information

Sponsor

University of Pennsylvania

Last update posted

Mar 5, 2026

Last verified

Mar, 2026

Keywords

  • aphasia
  • stroke
  • non-invasive brain stimulation
  • Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation

Trial information was received from ClinicalTrials.gov and was last updated on 2026-09-08. This information was provided to ClinicalTrials.gov by University of Pennsylvania on 2026-03-05.