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Purpose

The goal of this study is to find out if brain stimulation can help people stop skin-picking or nail-biting. The study wants to answer two main questions: 1. Does brain stimulation reduce the urge to pick skin or bite nails after those urges are triggered? 2. Does brain stimulation reduce how often people pick their skin or bite their nails? Participants will: - Talk about their skin-picking, nail-biting, and other mental health concerns - Be placed in situations that make them want to pick or bite - Rate how strong their urges are before and after brain stimulation Researchers will compare real brain stimulation to a placebo (a fake version that looks the same but has no effect) to see if the real stimulation works to reduce skin-picking and nail-biting urges and behaviors.

Condition

Eligibility

Eligible Ages
Between 18 Years and 60 Years
Eligible Sex
All
Accepts Healthy Volunteers
No

Inclusion Criteria

  • Ability to provide informed consent (as established by clinical interview), and voluntary, signed informed consent prior to the performance of any study specific - Ability and willingness to perform study-relevant clinical assessments and tDCS - Endorses mild to extreme intensity of urges to pick or bite their skin or nails

Exclusion Criteria

  • Any unstable medical, psychiatric, or neurological condition (including active or otherwise problematic suicidality) that may necessitate urgent treatment - Daily use of psychotropic medications that substantially lower seizure threshold (e.g., clozapine) - History of psychosis, mania, major neurological disorder, significant head trauma, or seizures/epilepsy - Current suicidal intent - Any major neurological disease or history of major head trauma, including concussion with extended loss of consciousness, or of psychosurgery - Current or suspected pregnancy - Endorsing possible contraindications for tDCS

Study Design

Phase
N/A
Study Type
Interventional
Allocation
Randomized
Intervention Model
Parallel Assignment
Primary Purpose
Treatment
Masking
Triple (Participant, Investigator, Outcomes Assessor)

Arm Groups

ArmDescriptionAssigned Intervention
Experimental
active multifocal Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation (tDCS) 		participants receive 13-min of active multifocal tDCS targeting the left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex. tDCS will be delivered offline for 13 minutes (1.5mA, 10 seconds ramp in/out).
  • Device: Wireless Multichannel Transcranial Current Stimulator (tDCS)
    tDCS will be delivered for 13 minutes (active) or only at the beginning and end of the 13 minute period (sham) using Neuroelectrics Instrument Controller software and a battery-driven Starstim 8-channel transcranial direct current stimulator with 1cm2 ceramic electrodes and SIGNAGEL conductive saline gel.
  • Behavioral: Cue exposure
    Participants will undergo three, twenty-second trials of exposure to individualized cues at the top of the established urge hierarchy, previously determined to precede picking or biting behaviors before and after tDCS.
  • Behavioral: Boredom induction
    Participants will be left in the testing room without access to a cellphone or reading materials for 2 different 6 minute periods.
Sham Comparator
sham multifocal Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation (tDCS) 		Sham stimulation will be identical to active but electrical current will only be ramped in/out at the beginning and end of the 13-min period.
  • Device: Wireless Multichannel Transcranial Current Stimulator (tDCS)
    tDCS will be delivered for 13 minutes (active) or only at the beginning and end of the 13 minute period (sham) using Neuroelectrics Instrument Controller software and a battery-driven Starstim 8-channel transcranial direct current stimulator with 1cm2 ceramic electrodes and SIGNAGEL conductive saline gel.
  • Behavioral: Cue exposure
    Participants will undergo three, twenty-second trials of exposure to individualized cues at the top of the established urge hierarchy, previously determined to precede picking or biting behaviors before and after tDCS.
  • Behavioral: Boredom induction
    Participants will be left in the testing room without access to a cellphone or reading materials for 2 different 6 minute periods.

Recruiting Locations

UK Center for Clinical and Translational Science and nearby locations

University of Kentucky
Lexington, Kentucky 40506
Contact:
Hannah Wild
859-414-6962
hannah.wild@uky.edu

More Details

NCT ID
NCT07019571
Status
Recruiting
Sponsor
Gopalkumar Rakesh

Study Contact

Hannah Wild, M.S.
‪(859) 414-6962‬
hannah.wild@uky.edu

Notice

Study information shown on this site is derived from ClinicalTrials.gov (a public registry operated by the National Institutes of Health). The listing of studies provided is not certain to be all studies for which you might be eligible. Furthermore, study eligibility requirements can be difficult to understand and may change over time, so it is wise to speak with your medical care provider and individual research study teams when making decisions related to participation.