NCT06887309

Spinal Cord Injury: Impact on Sensory, Motor, Behavioral and Cognitive Functions

Cerebral Reorganizations Induced by Spinal Cord Injury Spinal Cord Injury: Multimodal Assessments of Sensory-motor and Cognitive-behavioral Functions. SUPRASPINAL

• Status: Not Yet Recruiting
• Phase: N/A
• Study type: Interventional
• Enrollment: 30 (estimated)
• Sponsor: University Hospital, Montpellier · Academic / Other
• Sex: All
• Age: 18 Years – 80 Years
• Healthy volunteers: Accepted

Summary

Spinal cord injury (SCI) causes a variety of sensory-motor deficits and neuropsychological consequences. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) reveals a reduction in the volume of the somato-sensory and motor cortices, as well as atrophy in the white matter bundles. In addition, disturbances in cerebral activity are observed in several areas, notably the motor cortex and the prefrontal cortex. The aim of this study is to understand the evolution of brain function after SCI in comparison with a control group of healthy volunteers. We distinguish between patients with incomplete sensorimotor deficits (ASIA B,C,D) and complete sensorimotor deficits (ASIA A). Both patient groups will have a multimodal assessment at 1 week, 3 months and 12 months after SCI with MRI and neuropsychological tests. The group of healthy volunteers will only perform one MRI.

Detailed description

Lesions of the spinal cord induce sensory-motor deficits and have various neuropsychological effects. MRI shows a reduction in the volume of the somatosensory and motor cortices, as well as atrophy of the white matter bundles. Disturbances in brain activity are observed in several critical areas. Patients may experience cognitive impairment and an increased risk of depression and anxiety. Although deep brain stimulation and transcranial magnetic stimulation have shown positive effects, the efficacy of these treatments remains limited, partly due to insufficient understanding of post-SCI brain changes. The cognitive and behavioral consequences of spinal cord injury are poorly understood and mainly treated by symptomatic therapies, which are often ineffective and may have side effects. A better understanding of brain networks and their plasticity after spinal cord injury could facilitate the development of targeted therapies, such as cortical or deep basal ganglia stimulation.

Conditions

• Spinal Cord Injury

Interventions

Type	Name	Description
DIAGNOSTIC_TEST	MRI	MRI : anatomical (3DT1, 3D-FLAIR), functional (task-based and resting-state) and tractographic (multiband diffusion imaging) at three time points: one week, three months and twelve months after the spinal cord injury (SCI)
BEHAVIORAL	Neuropsychological tests	The following tests will be performed: the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MOCA), the Montgomery-Åsberg depression rating scale (MADRS), the Medical Outcome Study Short Form 36 (SF-36)

Timeline

• Start date: 2025-04-15
• Primary completion: 2026-04-15
• Completion: 2027-10-01
• First posted: 2025-03-20
• Last updated: 2025-03-20

Locations

1 site across 1 country: France