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Vagus Nerve Stimulation to Enhance Memory in Aging

This study is exploring whether a non-invasive treatment called Transcutaneous Auricular Vagus Nerve Stimulation (taVNS) can improve memory in healthy older adults. taVNS uses a device to deliver gentle electrical stimulation to a nerve in your ear. Researchers want to see if this stimulation helps with memory formation and if it's connected to your gut and brain health. You might be able to join if you are between 18-30 or 65-80 years old, have good vision, and speak English. You cannot participate if you are pregnant, have memory loss, or certain medical conditions. The main goal is to measure changes in your recognition memory after receiving the stimulation. The study plans to enroll 150 people, but its current status is unclear.

Study design
This is an interventional study, meaning participants will receive a specific treatment. It plans to enroll 150 participants.
What's involved
Not specified in the trial record.
Compensation
Not stated in the trial record.
Follow-up
Memory will be measured up to 2 hours after stimulation.

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NCT07214194

Vagus Nerve Stimulation to Enhance Memory in Aging

Not Yet Recruiting
NAAges 18–80InterventionalBasic science
Stanford University
~150 participants
Updated 2025-10-09 on ClinicalTrials.gov
What's tested:Transcutaneous Auricular Vagus Nerve Stimulation (taVNS)

At a glance

Recruiting sites
0 of 1 listed site is recruiting right now
RecruitingSuspended, closed, or not yet open
What they're measuring
Change in Recognition Memory (d-prime)
Measured over post-active vs post-sham stimulation; up to 2 hours of task

Conditions

Alzheimer Disease
Aging

Explore related trials

AgingAlzheimer's Disease

Where it's being run

1 sites across 1 states
California1

Study leadership

  • Anthony D Wagner, PhD · PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR · Stanford University

Who to contact

This trial hasn't published a contact. View it on ClinicalTrials.gov

Do you actually qualify for this trial?

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Eligibility criteria

Inclusion

Ages 18-30 years or 65-80 years
Normal or corrected-to-normal vision (visual acuity)
Fluent in English

Exclusion

Pregnant
Symptoms of memory loss
History of a neurological, psychiatric, or medical condition that could affect cognition or preclude MRI or pupillometry
Use of medications known to alter cognition
For older adults, neuropsychological performance that falls outside 1.5 standard deviations of age-adjusted norms and no self-reported memory or attention complaints

What this trial measures

  • Change in Recognition Memory (d-prime)post-active vs post-sham stimulation; up to 2 hours of task

    d' is a signal-detection sensitivity index-how well participants discriminate old (studied) from new (unstudied) items, independent of response bias. Computed as d' = Z(hit rate) - Z(false-alarm rate) from the old/new recognition memory test. Primary analysis is within-person Δhigh-confidence d' (based on "sure old" responses in the 4-point "sure old", "unsure old", "unsure new", "sure new" scale, Δ = active - sham) and Δoverall d' (based on "sure old" and "unsure old" responses). Main comparison is older vs. young, and within the older group also testing moderation by gut-brain axis measures and interactions with preclinical Alzheimer's disease pathology (pTau217, pTau181, Aβ42:40).