Brain Stimulation and Vision Testing

Part of paid clinical trials in Bethesda, Maryland.

Sponsor
National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH)
Study ID
NCT01617408
Status
Recruiting
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Conditions

  • Dorsal Pathway
  • Ventral Pathway
  • fMRI

Eligibility Criteria

Sex
ALL
Age
18 Years - 50 Years
Healthy Volunteers
Accepted

Study Details

Background: -The brain has two systems for recognizing objects. One system recognizes what an object is, and the other system recognizes where the object is located. However, there is much about how the brain handles and interprets the information from these two systems that is still unclear. Researchers want to study the parts of the brain that are involved in how vision is processed. They will use magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) or transcranial electrical stimulation (tES) on the brain. MRI measures what parts of the brain become more active when tasks are performed. TMS uses magnetic pulses to temporarily change the activity in parts of the brain. tES uses electrical current to temporarily change brain function. Objectives: -To better understand how people visually recognize different types of objects. Eligibility: -Healthy volunteers between 18 and 50 years of age, who only speak English. Design: * This study includes many different experiments on vision. Each experiment may combine visual tasks, MRI scans, and TMS or tES. Participants may be asked to have several different tests. Each test will require a separate visit to the National Institutes of Health. * Participants will be screened with a physical exam and medical history. They will have a baseline brain scan at the first visit. * Participants may do visual tasks alone, with MRI only, with TMS or tES only, or with MRI and TMS or tES combined. For the visual tasks, they will look at pictures of objects on a computer screen. Sometimes the images will appear very briefly (less than one-tenth of a second). Sometimes they will appear for up to 5 seconds. These images will be of things like faces, bodies, tools, and scenes. Participants will be asked to respond in different ways to the pictures. They may respond by typing on a computer keyboard or by pressing a button. Participants will have time to practice the tasks before the experiment. * Participants will remain on the study for up to 3 years.

Key Dates

Start date
Mar 4, 2013
Status verified
Oct 2025

Study Design

Enrollment
665 participants (estimated)

Arms

  • Arm: 1
    Neurologically normal subjects aged 18 to 50 years old

Primary Outcome Measure

Online behavioral TMS experiments: performance accuracy, sensitivity (d') and reaction time (RT); Offline fMRI TBS experiments: task performance as well as reduced neuronal activity [ Time Frame: Ongoing ]

Central Contacts

Locations (1)

FacilityCityStateZIPSite coordinators
National Institutes of Health Clinical CenterBethesdaMaryland20892
For more information at the NIH Clinical Center contact Office of Patient Recruitment (OPR)
[email protected]
800-411-1222

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By research site
National Institutes of Health Clinical Center· Bethesda, MD

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