TMS for Schizophrenia and Self-Agency

This study is investigating how a device called the NEXSTIM NAVIGATED BRAIN STIMULATION (NBS) SYSTEM, which uses transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS), might help people with schizophrenia. Researchers want to understand why some people with schizophrenia have difficulty with "self-agency" (knowing if an action or thought is their own) and if TMS can improve this. They will apply TMS to a specific brain area and measure changes in behavior and brain activity. You may be able to join if you are between 18 and 64 years old, in good general health, and speak English as your first language. Participants with schizophrenia must also have a stable diagnosis. The study is currently recruiting 160 participants, including both healthy volunteers and individuals with schizophrenia.

Study design
This is a randomized controlled trial involving 160 participants, including both healthy controls and individuals with schizophrenia. Participants will be randomly assigned to receive active TMS or TMS targeting a control site.
What's involved
You will undergo assessments for eligibility, including cognitive, clinical, and daily functioning assessments, structural MRI, and MEGI scans. After baseline, you will receive TMS and have follow-up assessments immediately after and up to one week later.
Compensation
Not stated in the trial record.
Follow-up
Participants will be followed immediately after TMS and up to one week later.

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NCT04807530

Medial-prefrontal Enhancement During Schizophrenia Systems Imaging

Recruiting
NAAges 18–64InterventionalTreatment
University of California, San Francisco
~160 participants
Updated 2025-08-29 on ClinicalTrials.gov
What's tested:TMS

At a glance

Recruiting sites
1 of 1 listed site is recruiting right now
RecruitingSuspended, closed, or not yet open
What they're measuring
Self-Agency Behavioral Change during Reality Monitoring after TMS vs Baseline (metrics of accuracy)
Measured over From baseline, to immediately after TMS, up to 1 week
+3 more outcomes measured
Schizophrenia
1 sites across 1 states
California1
  • Karuna Subramaniam, PhD · PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR · University of California, San Francisco

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Eligibility criteria

Inclusion

Good general physical health
English is first language
No neurological disorder
Meets MRI criteria
No current alcohol or substance use disorder
Schizophrenia diagnosis of any illness duration,
Clinical stability, defined as 12 weeks outpatient status and 4 weeks low to moderate dose of antipsychotic medication (\<1000 mg. chlorpromazine equivalents), plus stable doses of all other psychotropic medications

Exclusion

Implanted metallic parts of implanted electronic devices
Pregnant or trying to become pregnant
Any condition that would prevent the subject from giving voluntary informed consent
Scalp wounds or infections
Claustrophobia precluding MRI
Ongoing seizures
Neurological disorder
  • Self-Agency Behavioral Change during Reality Monitoring after TMS vs Baseline (metrics of accuracy)From baseline, to immediately after TMS, up to 1 week

    Change in retrieval accuracy of self-generated information during reality monitoring task from baseline to post-TMS. No scales used.

  • Self-Agency Behavioral Change during Speech Monitoring after TMS vs Baseline (metrics of speech perturbation units)From baseline, to immediately after TMS, up to 1 week

    Change in speech corrective responses during altered vs. unaltered auditory feedback, measured in units of speech perturbation (cents) from baseline to post-TMS. No scales used.

  • MEGI Neural Activity Change related to Self-Agency during Reality Monitoring after TMS vs Baseline (metrics of neural beta activation units)From baseline, to immediately after TMS, up to 1 week

    Whole-brain neural activity change related to self-agency by contrasting oscillatory activity during encoding and retrieval of self-generated information with encoding and retrieval of externally-derived information (with focus on mPFC and parietal cortices as our region-of-interest (ROI)), measured in beta weights neural signal change from baseline to post-TMS. No scales used.

  • MEGI Neural Activity Change related to Self-Agency during Speech Monitoring after TMS vs Baseline (metrics of neural beta activation units)From baseline, to immediately after TMS, up to 1 week

    Whole-brain neural activity related to self-agency by contrasting oscillatory activity related to speech onset during altered auditory feedback with activity related to speech onset during unaltered auditory feedback (with focus on mPFC and parietal cortices for ROI analyses) measured in beta weights neural signal change from baseline to post-TMS. No scales used.