NCT05992259

Brief Summary

At the moment, the invasive strategy for the infarct-associated coronary artery in patients with ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) necessary to save the myocardium and reduce the size of the necrosis zone remains the leading one. However, despite the high efficiency of providing medical care to patients with acute coronary syndrome (ACS), there remains a high mortality and disability of this group of patients. In this regard, the search for new drug and non-drug strategies for the treatment of patients with ACS is actively continuing. Over the past decade, it has been shown that transcutaneous vagus nerve stimulation (TENS) has a cardioprotective effect both in chronic heart failure and in coronary heart disease, improves cardiac function, prevents reperfusion injury, weakens myocardial remodeling, increases the effectiveness of defibrillation and reduces the size of a heart attack. One of the methods of noninvasive stimulation of the afferent fibers of the vagus nerve is percutaneous electrical stimulation of the auricular branch of the vagus nerve. However, further studies are needed to determine whether stimulation of the tragus can improve the long-term clinical outcome in this cohort of patients.

Trial Health

77
On Track

Trial Health Score

Automated assessment based on enrollment pace, timeline, and geographic reach

Enrollment
300

participants targeted

Target at P75+ for not_applicable

Timeline
7mo left

Started Sep 2022

Longer than P75 for not_applicable

Geographic Reach
1 country

1 active site

Status
recruiting

Health score is calculated from publicly available data and should be used for screening purposes only.

Trial Relationships

Click on a node to explore related trials.

Study Timeline

Key milestones and dates

Study Progress87%
Sep 2022Dec 2026

Study Start

First participant enrolled

September 1, 2022

Completed
10 months until next milestone

First Submitted

Initial submission to the registry

June 27, 2023

Completed
2 months until next milestone

First Posted

Study publicly available on registry

August 15, 2023

Completed
2.6 years until next milestone

Primary Completion

Last participant's last visit for primary outcome

March 30, 2026

Completed
8 months until next milestone

Study Completion

Last participant's last visit for all outcomes

December 1, 2026

Expected
Last Updated

June 18, 2025

Status Verified

June 1, 2025

Enrollment Period

3.6 years

First QC Date

June 27, 2023

Last Update Submit

June 17, 2025

Conditions

Keywords

auricular stimulationauricular vagus nerve stimulationtranscutaneous vagus nerve stimulation (TENS)vagus nerve stimulation (VNS)acute coronary syndromemyocardial ischemia reperfusion injuryST-segment elevation myocardial infarctioncoronary heart diseaseacute myocardial infarctionmortalityatrial fibrillation

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (2)

  • Hospital mortality

    The number of patients who died in the hospital.

    From date of randomization until the date of death from any cause, assessed up to 14 days.

  • 30-day mortality

    The number of patients who died within 30 days from the development of myocardial infarction.

    From date of randomization until the date of death from any cause, assessed up to 30 days.

Secondary Outcomes (1)

  • Number of participants with non-lethal events.

    From the date of randomization to the date of any of the listed events, assessed up to 14 days.

Other Outcomes (3)

  • Assessment of the level of myocardial damage.

    Diagnosis will be carried out during hospitalization, after 6 hours and on the 4th day of hospitalization.

  • Assessment of the level of inflammation.

    Diagnosis will be carried out during hospitalization and after 24 hours.

  • Assessment of the level of heart failure

    Diagnosis will be carried out during hospitalization and on the 4th day of hospitalization.

Study Arms (2)

Active TENS

ACTIVE COMPARATOR

It will be performed attached to the tragus of the left ear.

Device: TENS

Sham TENS

SHAM COMPARATOR

It will be performed attached to the earlobe of the left ear.

Device: TENS

Interventions

TENSDEVICE

TENS will be performed from the moment of admission to the PCI, during the PCI and for the next 30 minutes after it.

Active TENSSham TENS

Eligibility Criteria

Age40 Years - 75 Years
Sexall
Healthy VolunteersNo
Age GroupsAdult (18-64), Older Adult (65+)

You may qualify if:

  • patients with STEMI who have signed an informed voluntary consent to participate in the study;
  • primary myocardial infarction;
  • treatment in the first 12 hours from the onset of pain syndrome;
  • primary PCI.

You may not qualify if:

  • acute heart failure III-IV;
  • bradyarrhythmias;
  • atrial fibrillation/flutter at the time of switching on;
  • Thrombolytic therapy at the prehospital stage;
  • a history of myocardial infarction;
  • PCI/coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) in the anamnesis.

Contact the study team to confirm eligibility.

Sponsors & Collaborators

Study Sites (1)

Scientific Research Institute Ochapovsky Regional Clinical Hospital

Krasnodar, Russia

RECRUITING

Related Publications (1)

  • Kruchinova S, Gendugova M, Namitokov A, Sokolskaya M, Gilevich I, Tatarintseva Z, Karibova M, Danilov V, Simakin N, Shvartz E, Kosmacheva E, Shvartz V. Low-Frequency Electrical Stimulation of the Auricular Branch of the Vagus Nerve in Patients with ST-Elevation Myocardial Infarction: A Randomized Clinical Trial. J Clin Med. 2025 Mar 10;14(6):1866. doi: 10.3390/jcm14061866.

Related Links

MeSH Terms

Conditions

Acute Coronary SyndromeReperfusion InjuryST Elevation Myocardial InfarctionCoronary DiseaseAtrial Fibrillation

Interventions

Transcutaneous Electric Nerve Stimulation

Condition Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Myocardial IschemiaHeart DiseasesCardiovascular DiseasesVascular DiseasesPostoperative ComplicationsPathologic ProcessesPathological Conditions, Signs and SymptomsMyocardial InfarctionInfarctionIschemiaNecrosisArrhythmias, Cardiac

Intervention Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Electric Stimulation TherapyTherapeuticsPhysical Therapy ModalitiesRehabilitationAnalgesiaAnesthesia and Analgesia

Study Officials

  • Vladimir Shvartz, MD, DM

    Bakoulev Scientific Center for Cardiovascular Surgery

    PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR

Central Study Contacts

Vladimir Shvartz, MD, DM

CONTACT

Study Design

Study Type
interventional
Phase
not applicable
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Masking
QUADRUPLE
Who Masked
PARTICIPANT, CARE PROVIDER, INVESTIGATOR, OUTCOMES ASSESSOR
Purpose
TREATMENT
Intervention Model
PARALLEL
Model Details: 1:1 randomization of active stimulation vs. sham stimulation
Sponsor Type
OTHER GOV
Responsible Party
PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR
PI Title
MD, DM, Professor

Study Record Dates

First Submitted

June 27, 2023

First Posted

August 15, 2023

Study Start

September 1, 2022

Primary Completion

March 30, 2026

Study Completion (Estimated)

December 1, 2026

Last Updated

June 18, 2025

Record last verified: 2025-06

Data Sharing

IPD Sharing
Will not share

Locations