Interhemispheric Connectivity and Compensation

NCT05207878 | Completed

• 2 other identifiers: 202009183R01NS114046-01A1
• Study Type: interventional
• Target: 120
• Locations: 1 country
• Sites: 1

Brief Summary

The goal of this study is to determine which parts of the brain make it possible for some people to move skillfully with their left non-dominant hand.

Conditions

Peripheral Nerve Injury Upper Limb; Healthy

Keywords

laterality of motor control; movement; functional magnetic resonance imaging; functional laterality

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (1)

• BOLD (blood oxygen level dependent) signal in ROIs (regions of interest)

  BOLD signal in key ROIs (primary motor and posterior parietal cortex). ROI selection may be revisited after preliminary data review (35 participants)

  Day 1

Secondary Outcomes (2)

• Drawing smoothness

  Day 1

• Hand choice

  Day 1

Study Arms (1)

Movement task

EXPERIMENTAL

All participants perform the STEGA-MRI (standardized tracing evaluation \& grapheme assessment - MRI) precision drawing task during fMRI scanning. Motor assessments outside the MRI do not qualify as interventions.

Other: STEGA-MRI

Interventions

STEGA-MRI OTHER

Precision drawing task (movement assessment)

Movement task

Eligibility Criteria

• Age: 18 Years+
• Sex: all
• Healthy Volunteers: Yes
• Age Groups: Adult (18-64), Older Adult (65+)

You may qualify if:

• Age ≥ 18
• English speaking and reading
• Able to fit in Prisma scanner bore (60 cm diameter)
• Right hand dominant (self report, and Edinburgh handedness ≥ +40)
• Chronic unilateral upper extremity peripheral nerve injury to the right side
• "Chronic" defined as ≥ 6 months since injury
• "Upper extremity" defined as hand, arm, or shoulder (including e.g. brachial plexus)
• "Injury" defined as localized cause (e.g. mechanical/tumor, not distributed pathology), including compression
• Some impairment to writing, requiring both of:
• Difficulty writing, as determined by score 2+ (Mild+) on "How much difficulty have you had in the last week with writing?" (From Disabilities of the Arm, Shoulder, and Hand survey question #2)
• Box and Blocks motor performance ≥1 standard deviation below the mean of age-matched healthy adults (Mathiowetz et al. 1985, AJOT).

You may not qualify if:

• Currently intoxicated or otherwise non-compliant
• Chronic pain diagnosis unrelated to the nerve injury
• Uncorrected visual impairment that interferes with ability to see drawings in MRI
• Motor function diagnoses that affect function of the left hand, now or in past 2 years
• Motor function diagnoses currently affecting the right hand, unrelated to the nerve injury
• This is not meant to exclude a single event with complex consequences (e.g. nerve and tendon)
• This is not meant to exclude multiple nerve injuries in the same arm, if each one is eligible (II.B.1)
• This is meant to exclude e.g. injury and unrelated musculoskeletal disorder in same arm
• Upper extremity surgery, including peripheral nerve surgery, within last 2 months
• Contraindication for MRI
• Contraindication for transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS)
• May exclude from TMS only (since not all participants undergo TMS), or exclude from full study
• Amputation affecting any part of thumb, index, or middle fingers (including higher level, e.g. whole hand)
• History of chronic cocaine use (based on medical record or volunteered; will not actively inquire)
• Diagnosis of schizophrenia or other rare psychiatric disorder

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Washington University School of Medicine: lead
• National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS): collaborator

Study Sites (1)

Washington University School of Medicine

St Louis, Missouri, 63108, United States

Location

Study Officials

• Benjamin A Philip, PhD

  Washington University School of Medicine

  PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR

Study Design

• Study Type: interventional
• Phase: not applicable
• Allocation: NA
• Masking: NONE
• Masking Details: During TMS, participants will be masked to whether they receive effective or sham stimulation on a given trial.
• Purpose: BASIC SCIENCE
• Intervention Model: SINGLE GROUP
• Sponsor Type: OTHER
• Responsible Party: SPONSOR

Model Details: The only "intervention" is the movement task. All participants receive the same task.

Study Record Dates

• First Submitted: December 25, 2021
• First Posted: January 26, 2022
• Study Start: December 9, 2021
• Primary Completion: August 1, 2025
• Study Completion: August 1, 2025
• Last Updated: October 9, 2025

Record last verified: 2025-10

Data Sharing

• IPD Sharing: Will share
• Shared Documents: STUDY PROTOCOL, ICF
• Time Frame: Will become available after summary data are published. Will remain available indefinitely.

Locations

US (1)