Recruiting

Cervical Vibrotactile Stimulation

Sponsor:

University of Minnesota

Code:

NCT07245615

Conditions

Cervical Dystonia

Eligibility Criteria

Sex: All

Age: 30+

Healthy Volunteers: Accepted

Interventions

cervical vibrotactile stimulation

Study Details

Brief summary:

The primary goal of this clinical trial is to examine the effects of cervical vibrotactile stimulation intensity on abnormal head posture in people with cervical dystonia. The main question is: Does higher vibration intensity correct head posture to a greater extent than lower vibration intensity? Researchers will compare the head posture of participants with cervical dystonia who receive different intensities of vibration to cervical muscles.

The secondary goal of this clinical trial is to examine the degree of proprioceptive impairment in cervical dystonia. Specifically, the study will assess proprioceptive impairment at the neck, wrist, and ankle joints, and seeks to determine whether the impairment improves with cervical vibrotactile stimulation.

Researchers will compare the proprioception testing results of these joints between cervical dystonia patients and age- and sex- matched healthy controls. Researchers will also compare the neck proprioception testing results of cervical dystonia patients before and after stimulation.

Participants will visit the lab once for three hours, where they will go through:

1. clinical questionnaires;
2. neck, wrist, and ankle proprioception testing,
3. vibrotactile stimulation where they sit and relax
4. neck proprioception testing

Conditions

Cervical Dystonia

Study ID

NCT07245615

Start date

Mar 10, 2025

Status verified date

Sep, 2026

Completion date

Dec 31, 2026

Anticipated

Primary completion date

Dec 31, 2026

Anticipated

Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

Sex: All

Age: 30+

Healthy Volunteers: Accepted

Inclusion Criteria:

Confirmed diagnosis of adult-onset, isolated idiopathic cervical dystonia.

Exclusion Criteria:

History of other neurological diseases, including Parkinson's disease, essential tremor, dementia, etc.

History of peripheral nervous system disease that can impair proprioception. Deep brain stimulation implanted or denervation surgery. UBACC score lower than 15. Severe head tremors or facial muscle contractions. Regular intake of benzodiazepines or antidepressant medication.

Study Design

Enrollment

50 participants

Anticipated

Allocation

Non randomized

Intervention Model

Single group

Primary purpose

Treatment

Interventions and Outcome Measures

Arms

experimental: Cervical Dystonia Group

All participants with cervical dystonia will be in this group to receive the intervention. After answer three questionnaires (The Mini Mental State Examination, the Revised Toronto Western Spasmodic Torticollis Rating Scale and Psychiatric Screening Tool, Fahn, Tolosa, Marin Tremor Rating Scale), their neck, wrist, and ankle proprioception will be tested respectively. They they will go through the intervention of cervical vibrotactile stimulation. Lastly, their neck proprioception will be tested again.

no intervention: Healthy Controls

Healthy people age- and sex- matched with participants with cervical dystonia will be in this group. This group will only be tested on their neck, wrist, and ankle proprioception, to compare with the cervical dystonia group.

Interventions

cervical vibrotactile stimulation

The intervention in this study is vibrotactile stimulation with 3 different intensities on 4 combinations of cervical muscles. The three intensity levels are 0.25mm, 0.64mm, and 1.48mm of movement range of the vibrator, when attached to the cervical area. The four muscle combinations (left and right SCM, left and right TRP, left SCM and TRP, right SCM and TRP) are selected as they were shown to be more effective than other combinations in a previous studies. The total number of bouts of stimulation is 12 (3 intensities \* 4 muscle combinations). Each VTS application is 2 minutes long, resulting in total stimulation time of 24 minutes. There will be a 5-minute break of no-vibration between each application of vibration.

During the intervention, the participant will remain seated and asked to not interfere voluntarily with dystonic muscle spasms. During breaks, they can adjust their head posture for their comfort. Extra breaks will be given if needed.

Primary outcome measure

  • Head Angle Index [ Time Frame: As part of the one-time visit, this part will take 90 minutes. ]

Central Contacts and Locations

Central contacts

Jürgen Konczak, PhD

612-624-4370jkonczak@umn.edu

Jason Kang

612-625-3313kang0463@umn.edu

Locations

Human Sensorimotor Control Laboratory

Recruiting

Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States, 55455

More Information

Sponsor

University of Minnesota

Last update posted

Oct 1, 2026

Last verified

Sep, 2026

Keywords

  • vibrotactile stimulation
  • non-invasive
  • symptom control
  • proprioception

Trial information was received from ClinicalTrials.gov and was last updated on 2026-10-24. This information was provided to ClinicalTrials.gov by University of Minnesota on 2026-10-01. Recruitment status is synced daily from ClinicalTrials.gov and may not reflect the sponsor's current status. Confirm during your call.