NCT06027190

Brief Summary

The goal of this clinical trial is to investigate the clinical efficacy of repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation in the treatment of achalasia in patients diagnosed with achalasia by comprehensive evaluation of clinical symptoms, HREM, and barium meal examination, optimize rTMS treatment parameters, and provide an effective and noninvasive new treatment strategy for achalasia. The main questions it aims to answer are:

  1. 1.To investigate the clinical efficacy of individualized treatment of achalasia with optical 3D navigation repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation.
  2. 2.Optimize rTMS parameters to achieve the best clinical treatment.

Trial Health

63
Monitor

Trial Health Score

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

Enrollment
112

participants targeted

Target at P50-P75 for not_applicable

Timeline
8mo left

Started Jan 2024

Typical duration for not_applicable

Geographic Reach
1 country

1 active site

Status
not yet 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 Progress78%
Jan 2024Dec 2026

First Submitted

Initial submission to the registry

August 31, 2023

Completed
7 days until next milestone

First Posted

Study publicly available on registry

September 7, 2023

Completed
4 months until next milestone

Study Start

First participant enrolled

January 1, 2024

Completed
3 years until next milestone

Primary Completion

Last participant's last visit for primary outcome

December 31, 2026

Expected
Same day until next milestone

Study Completion

Last participant's last visit for all outcomes

December 31, 2026

Last Updated

September 21, 2023

Status Verified

September 1, 2023

Enrollment Period

3 years

First QC Date

August 31, 2023

Last Update Submit

September 15, 2023

Conditions

Keywords

AchalasiarTMSfMRINon-invasive

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (3)

  • Eckardt score

    The Eckardt scoring system is used to assess the severity of symptoms, with 0 to 1 in grade 0, 2 to 3 in grade I., 4 to 6 in grade II., and \> 6 in grade III. The more severe the symptoms, the higher the score, and can also be used for efficacy assessment.

    Measured immediately after intervention.

  • Real-time esophageal barium meal examination

    The severity of the patient 's condition and the therapeutic effect were evaluated by defining the height and maximum width of the residual barium area.

    Measured immediately after intervention.

  • High-resolution esophageal manometry(HREM)

    HREM is the gold standard for the diagnosis of achalasia of cardia (AC), which can assess the relaxation ability of the lower esophageal sphincter (LES) and the contraction ability of the esophageal body. HREM dynamically collects the mean pressure data of multiple parts of the whole esophagus in real time, and converts the linear manometry pattern into color pressure topography. The basic manometry parameters include integrated relaxation pressure (IRP) and lower esophageal sphincter pressure (LESP), which can more truly reflect the relaxation function of the gastroesophageal junction (EGJ) and are the key indicators for the diagnosis of AC.

    Measured immediately after intervention.

Secondary Outcomes (2)

  • Heart rate variability assessment

    Measured immediately after intervention.

  • Neurotransmitter detection analysis

    Measured immediately after intervention.

Study Arms (2)

Sham group

SHAM COMPARATOR

Intervention Name and Specification: Placebo coil (Magstim Company, Whitland, UK): looks and sounds consistent with true coil but does not produce current stimulation.

Device: Sham

rTMS group

EXPERIMENTAL

1. 5Hz-rTMS group 2. 10Hz-rTMS group 3. 30Hz-rTMS group Intervention Name and Specification: 1. Transcranial magnetic stimulator (M-100 Ultimate, Yingzhi Technology Co., Ltd., China) 2. 70 mm diameter figure-of-eight coil (BY90A, Yingzhi Technology Co., Ltd., China). Each group received acute and chronic stimulation, respectively. In the acute stimulation stage, patients only needed to do rTMS once, and HREM and HRV were administered before and after rTMS; in the chronic stimulation stage, patients received 25 minutes of rTMS true stimulation each time a day for 20 times, which was completed within 30 days, and the true stimulation parameters were the same as those of acute stimulation.

Device: Repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation

Interventions

Intervention Name and Specification 1. Transcranial magnetic stimulator (M-100 Ultimate, Yingzhi Technology Co., Ltd., China) . 2. 70-mm-diameter figure-of-eight coil (BY90A, Yingzhi Technology Co., Ltd., China). 3) Placebo coil (Magstim Company, Whitland, UK): the appearance and sound were consistent with the true coil, but no current stimulation was produced.

rTMS group
ShamDEVICE

Placebo coil (Magstim Company, Whitland, UK):

Sham group

Eligibility Criteria

Age18 Years - 75 Years
Sexall
Healthy VolunteersNo
Age GroupsAdult (18-64), Older Adult (65+)

You may qualify if:

  • Aged more than 18 years old, less than 75 years old;
  • Clinical symptoms evaluation, HREM, esophageal barium meal examination confirmed the diagnosis of achalasia;
  • Willing to sign informed consent.

You may not qualify if:

  • Presence of metal hardware in close contact with the discharge coil (e.g., cochlear implant, internal pulse generator, or drug pump). Note: Cochlear implants include electrodes, magnets, loop antennas, and electronic chips under the scalp implanted in the cochlea;
  • Intracranial metal implants;
  • Patients with cardiac pacemakers, vagal nerve stimulation (VNS) systems, spinal cord stimulators, and deep brain stimulation implanted with pulse generators should be used with caution;
  • People at higher risk of noisy hearing loss and patients with hypoacusis symptoms should be used with caution;
  • Pregnancy;
  • Severe or recent heart disease;
  • Personal history of epilepsy, use of known drugs that lower the seizure threshold, and other factors that may lower the seizure threshold (e.g., lack of sleep, infection, and alcohol abuse);
  • Increased intracranial pressure;
  • Acute phase of intracranial infection and hemorrhagic disease;
  • Contraindications to MRI examination or claustrophobia;
  • Refusal to sign informed consent.

Contact the study team to confirm eligibility.

Sponsors & Collaborators

Study Sites (1)

Nanjing Drum Tower Hospital

Nanjing, 210008, China

Location

Related Publications (19)

  • Pomenti S, Blackett JW, Jodorkovsky D. Achalasia: Diagnosis, Management and Surveillance. Gastroenterol Clin North Am. 2021 Dec;50(4):721-736. doi: 10.1016/j.gtc.2021.07.001. Epub 2021 Oct 2.

    PMID: 34717867BACKGROUND
  • Schlottmann F, Patti MG. Esophageal achalasia: current diagnosis and treatment. Expert Rev Gastroenterol Hepatol. 2018 Jul;12(7):711-721. doi: 10.1080/17474124.2018.1481748. Epub 2018 Jun 8.

    PMID: 29804476BACKGROUND
  • Mari A, Abu Baker F, Pellicano R, Khoury T. Diagnosis and Management of Achalasia: Updates of the Last Two Years. J Clin Med. 2021 Aug 16;10(16):3607. doi: 10.3390/jcm10163607.

    PMID: 34441901BACKGROUND
  • Gregersen H, Lo KM. Pathophysiology and treatment of achalasia in a muscle mechanical perspective. Ann N Y Acad Sci. 2018 Dec;1434(1):173-184. doi: 10.1111/nyas.13711. Epub 2018 May 14.

    PMID: 29756656BACKGROUND
  • Shiwaku H, Sato H, Shimamura Y, Abe H, Shiota J, Sato C, Ominami M, Sakae H, Hata Y, Fukuda H, Ogawa R, Nakamura J, Tatsuta T, Ikebuchi Y, Yokomichi H, Hasegawa S, Inoue H. Risk factors and long-term course of gastroesophageal reflux disease after peroral endoscopic myotomy: A large-scale multicenter cohort study in Japan. Endoscopy. 2022 Sep;54(9):839-847. doi: 10.1055/a-1753-9801. Epub 2022 Feb 16.

    PMID: 35172368BACKGROUND
  • Schlottmann F, Neto RML, Herbella FAM, Patti MG. Esophageal Achalasia: Pathophysiology, Clinical Presentation, and Diagnostic Evaluation. Am Surg. 2018 Apr 1;84(4):467-472.

    PMID: 29712590BACKGROUND
  • Goyal RK, Padmanabhan R, Sang Q. Neural circuits in swallowing and abdominal vagal afferent-mediated lower esophageal sphincter relaxation. Am J Med. 2001 Dec 3;111 Suppl 8A:95S-105S. doi: 10.1016/s0002-9343(01)00863-4.

    PMID: 11749933BACKGROUND
  • Clyburn C, Travagli RA, Browning KN. Acute high-fat diet upregulates glutamatergic signaling in the dorsal motor nucleus of the vagus. Am J Physiol Gastrointest Liver Physiol. 2018 May 1;314(5):G623-G634. doi: 10.1152/ajpgi.00395.2017. Epub 2018 Jan 25.

    PMID: 29368945BACKGROUND
  • Browning KN, Carson KE. Central Neurocircuits Regulating Food Intake in Response to Gut Inputs-Preclinical Evidence. Nutrients. 2021 Mar 11;13(3):908. doi: 10.3390/nu13030908.

    PMID: 33799575BACKGROUND
  • Farre R, Sifrim D. Regulation of basal tone, relaxation and contraction of the lower oesophageal sphincter. Relevance to drug discovery for oesophageal disorders. Br J Pharmacol. 2008 Mar;153(5):858-69. doi: 10.1038/sj.bjp.0707572. Epub 2007 Nov 12.

    PMID: 17994108BACKGROUND
  • Hornby PJ, Abrahams TP. Central control of lower esophageal sphincter relaxation. Am J Med. 2000 Mar 6;108 Suppl 4a:90S-98S. doi: 10.1016/s0002-9343(99)00345-9.

    PMID: 10718459BACKGROUND
  • Abrahams TP, Partosoedarso ER, Hornby PJ. Lower oesophageal sphincter relaxation evoked by stimulation of the dorsal motor nucleus of the vagus in ferrets. Neurogastroenterol Motil. 2002 Jun;14(3):295-304. doi: 10.1046/j.1365-2982.2002.00329.x.

    PMID: 12061915BACKGROUND
  • Urban DJ, Roth BL. DREADDs (designer receptors exclusively activated by designer drugs): chemogenetic tools with therapeutic utility. Annu Rev Pharmacol Toxicol. 2015;55:399-417. doi: 10.1146/annurev-pharmtox-010814-124803. Epub 2014 Sep 25.

    PMID: 25292433BACKGROUND
  • Roth BL. DREADDs for Neuroscientists. Neuron. 2016 Feb 17;89(4):683-94. doi: 10.1016/j.neuron.2016.01.040.

    PMID: 26889809BACKGROUND
  • Magnus CJ, Lee PH, Bonaventura J, Zemla R, Gomez JL, Ramirez MH, Hu X, Galvan A, Basu J, Michaelides M, Sternson SM. Ultrapotent chemogenetics for research and potential clinical applications. Science. 2019 Apr 12;364(6436):eaav5282. doi: 10.1126/science.aav5282. Epub 2019 Mar 14.

    PMID: 30872534BACKGROUND
  • Nagai Y, Miyakawa N, Takuwa H, Hori Y, Oyama K, Ji B, Takahashi M, Huang XP, Slocum ST, DiBerto JF, Xiong Y, Urushihata T, Hirabayashi T, Fujimoto A, Mimura K, English JG, Liu J, Inoue KI, Kumata K, Seki C, Ono M, Shimojo M, Zhang MR, Tomita Y, Nakahara J, Suhara T, Takada M, Higuchi M, Jin J, Roth BL, Minamimoto T. Deschloroclozapine, a potent and selective chemogenetic actuator enables rapid neuronal and behavioral modulations in mice and monkeys. Nat Neurosci. 2020 Sep;23(9):1157-1167. doi: 10.1038/s41593-020-0661-3. Epub 2020 Jul 6.

    PMID: 32632286BACKGROUND
  • Travagli RA, Anselmi L. Vagal neurocircuitry and its influence on gastric motility. Nat Rev Gastroenterol Hepatol. 2016 Jul;13(7):389-401. doi: 10.1038/nrgastro.2016.76. Epub 2016 May 25.

    PMID: 27251213BACKGROUND
  • Li J, Xu K, Guo Y, Chen X, Li G, Qi L, Che X. Case evidence of repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation in the management of refractory irritable bowel syndrome with comorbid depression. Brain Stimul. 2022 Mar-Apr;15(2):434-436. doi: 10.1016/j.brs.2022.01.020. Epub 2022 Feb 11. No abstract available.

    PMID: 35158109BACKGROUND
  • Algladi T, Harris M, Whorwell PJ, Paine P, Hamdy S. Modulation of human visceral sensitivity by noninvasive magnetoelectrical neural stimulation in health and irritable bowel syndrome. Pain. 2015 Jul;156(7):1348-1356. doi: 10.1097/j.pain.0000000000000187.

    PMID: 25867123BACKGROUND

MeSH Terms

Conditions

Esophageal AchalasiaVagus Nerve Diseases

Interventions

Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation

Condition Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Esophageal Motility DisordersDeglutition DisordersEsophageal DiseasesGastrointestinal DiseasesDigestive System DiseasesCranial Nerve DiseasesNervous System Diseases

Intervention Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Magnetic Field TherapyTherapeutics

Central Study Contacts

Study Design

Study Type
interventional
Phase
not applicable
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Masking
SINGLE
Who Masked
PARTICIPANT
Purpose
TREATMENT
Intervention Model
PARALLEL
Model Details: In patients with achalasia diagnosed by clinical symptoms, HREM and barium meal examination, functional connectivity analysis of DMV with three brain regions (precentral gyrus, postcentral gyrus and insula) was performed by scanning T1 structural magnetic resonance imaging, and brain regions with the strongest positive functional connectivity with DMV were selected as individualized rTMS targets by optical 3D navigation. All patients were randomly divided into four groups: sham-rTMS group, 5Hz-rTMS group, 10Hz-rTMS group, and 30Hz-rTMS group, and each group received acute and chronic stimulation, respectively.
Sponsor Type
OTHER
Responsible Party
SPONSOR INVESTIGATOR
PI Title
Professor

Study Record Dates

First Submitted

August 31, 2023

First Posted

September 7, 2023

Study Start

January 1, 2024

Primary Completion (Estimated)

December 31, 2026

Study Completion (Estimated)

December 31, 2026

Last Updated

September 21, 2023

Record last verified: 2023-09

Locations