Studies Into Touch in Healthy Humans to Provide Sensory Feedback in Prostheses

NCT ID: NCT05548322

Last Updated: 2025-02-10

Study Results

Results pending

The study team has not published outcome measurements, participant flow, or safety data for this trial yet. Check back later for updates.

Basic Information

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Recruitment Status

RECRUITING

Clinical Phase

NA

Total Enrollment

210 participants

Study Classification

INTERVENTIONAL

Study Start Date

2024-04-15

Study Completion Date

2034-11-02

Brief Summary

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Our sense of touch is essential to explore our environment and experience life and is based on signals from receptors in the body that are sensitive to different types of stimulation. The TACTHUM projects aims to investigate the fundamental firing of mechanoreceptors in the body to various external stimuli, with an end-aim to better understand the human somatosensory system and to apply this knowledge to provide comprehensive sensory feedback in prosthetics. We have a vast system of peripheral receptors in the skin and muscles that provide us with exquisitely detailed information about our everyday interactions. When there is injury to a body part, such as in amputation, there is a significant loss of somatosensory input. Prosthetic devices have greatly developmed in the past few years, especially with the introduction of useful sensory feedback. However, there is a lot to discover both about the workings of the somatosensory system and how to recreate this to give feedback in a prosthetic device.

The main objective of the TACTHUM project is to understand how to recover and apply useful somatosensory feedback in prostheses for amputees. There are a number of other sub-objectives, to:

1. Determine how tactile mechanoreceptors encode the texture of natural surfaces during passive and active exploration.
2. Investigate how our sense of touch varies with emotional state.
3. Explore what happens to our sense of touch when we explore surfaces at different temperatures.
4. Understand the origin of our perception of humidity.
5. Investigate differences in the encoding of tactile information with age.
6. Determine the perceptions generated by the stimulation of single tactile afferents.
7. Study changes in spontaneous activity and responses to tactile stimulation on the residual limb of amputees.

To accomplish these objectives, we will primarily use the technique of microneurography, in vivo recordings from peripheral nerves, to gain direct information about the firing of peripheral neurons in humans. In conjunction with this, we will use a variety of mechanical and thermal stimuli to excite somatosensory fibers and register the activity of other physiological and perceptual measures. This will allow us to gain a fuller understanding of how the incoming somatosensory signals are interpreted and processed. Overall, we aim to explore how more naturalistic tactile interactions are encoded and how these can be translated to provide realistic prosthetic feedback.

Detailed Description

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Conditions

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Somatosensory Disorders Amputation Tactile Disorders Aging Prosthesis User

Study Design

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Allocation Method

NON_RANDOMIZED

Intervention Model

PARALLEL

Participants will take part in experiments that investigate the seven arms of the study. Participants with an amputation will only take part in arm 7. Healthy participants may take part in one to six arms (arms 1-6). However, this is dependent upon the recordings found in the experiment.
Primary Study Purpose

BASIC_SCIENCE

Blinding Strategy

SINGLE

Participants

Study Groups

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Study of tactile afferent responses to natural surfaces

Group Type EXPERIMENTAL

Different surfaces to be touched

Intervention Type DEVICE

The participant will touch various different surfaces and textures, including ones of different temperature and including solids and liquids.

Modulation of touch according to the emotional state

Group Type EXPERIMENTAL

Different surfaces to be touched

Intervention Type DEVICE

The participant will touch various different surfaces and textures, including ones of different temperature and including solids and liquids.

Emotional state change

Intervention Type BEHAVIORAL

The emotional state of the participant will be modulated by listening to music.

Effect of temperature on tactile sensitivity

Group Type EXPERIMENTAL

Different surfaces to be touched

Intervention Type DEVICE

The participant will touch various different surfaces and textures, including ones of different temperature and including solids and liquids.

Origin of wetness perception

Group Type EXPERIMENTAL

Different surfaces to be touched

Intervention Type DEVICE

The participant will touch various different surfaces and textures, including ones of different temperature and including solids and liquids.

Aging and tactile sensitivity

Group Type EXPERIMENTAL

Different surfaces to be touched

Intervention Type DEVICE

The participant will touch various different surfaces and textures, including ones of different temperature and including solids and liquids.

Emotional state change

Intervention Type BEHAVIORAL

The emotional state of the participant will be modulated by listening to music.

Electrical stimulation

Intervention Type DEVICE

The participant will receive electrical stimulation of single nerve fibers (a few microamps) to artificially excite an individual afferent.

Tactile perceptions induced by the stimulation of single sensory fibers

Group Type EXPERIMENTAL

Electrical stimulation

Intervention Type DEVICE

The participant will receive electrical stimulation of single nerve fibers (a few microamps) to artificially excite an individual afferent.

Study of tactile feedback after amputation

Group Type EXPERIMENTAL

Different surfaces to be touched

Intervention Type DEVICE

The participant will touch various different surfaces and textures, including ones of different temperature and including solids and liquids.

Electrical stimulation

Intervention Type DEVICE

The participant will receive electrical stimulation of single nerve fibers (a few microamps) to artificially excite an individual afferent.

Interventions

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Different surfaces to be touched

The participant will touch various different surfaces and textures, including ones of different temperature and including solids and liquids.

Intervention Type DEVICE

Emotional state change

The emotional state of the participant will be modulated by listening to music.

Intervention Type BEHAVIORAL

Electrical stimulation

The participant will receive electrical stimulation of single nerve fibers (a few microamps) to artificially excite an individual afferent.

Intervention Type DEVICE

Eligibility Criteria

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Inclusion Criteria

* Men and women aged between 20 and 70.
* Be a member of a social security scheme, or a beneficiary of such a scheme
* Be calm enough to sit still for four hours.
* Specific for people participating in Arm 7 on amputees: People with an upper or lower limb amputation (unilateral) of more than 2 years.

Exclusion Criteria

* Have peripheral neuropathy (diabetes, Raynaud's disease) or chronic muscle and/or sensory pain.
* Have a neurological or psychiatric history.
* Be subject to epilepsy.
* Be pregnant (declared) or breastfeeding, having given birth within the last year.
* Be afraid of injections.
* Being under dermatological treatment.
* Have a pacemaker.
* Not being able to understand the information leaflet and the consent form or sign it.
* Be subject to a legal protection measure (declarative)
* Be a protected adult (curatorship or guardianship)
Minimum Eligible Age

20 Years

Maximum Eligible Age

70 Years

Eligible Sex

ALL

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Sponsors

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Institut National de la Santé Et de la Recherche Médicale, France

OTHER_GOV

Sponsor Role lead

Responsible Party

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Responsibility Role SPONSOR

Principal Investigators

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Maya Elzeiere, MD

Role: PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR

CNRS - Aix-Marseille University

Rochelle Ackerley, PhD

Role: STUDY_DIRECTOR

CNRS - Aix-Marseille University

Locations

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CNRS - Aix-Marseille University UMR7291

Marseille, , France

Site Status RECRUITING

Hôpital HIA Lavéran

Marseille, , France

Site Status NOT_YET_RECRUITING

Countries

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France

Central Contacts

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Rochelle Ackerley, PhD

Role: CONTACT

0033413550888

Jean-Marc Aimonetti, PhD

Role: CONTACT

0033413550833

Facility Contacts

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Rochelle Ackerley, PhD

Role: primary

Jean-Marc Aimonetti, PhD

Role: backup

Laurent Théfenne, MD

Role: primary

Rochelle Ackerley, PhD

Role: backup

Other Identifiers

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2021-A01604-37

Identifier Type: REGISTRY

Identifier Source: secondary_id

C21-19

Identifier Type: -

Identifier Source: org_study_id

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