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June 2026

ChiCTR Trial Asks If Embodied Multisensory Training Sharpens Motor-Imagery Decoding

The Chinese Clinical Trial Registry (ChiCTR) logged a new study on June 5, 2026 under the number ChiCTR2600126291, testing whether a period of multisensory embodied training beforehand alters the neural representation of imagined movement and the decoding performance of a brain-computer interface (BCI). Recruitment has not yet begun.
Why it matters Most efforts to raise motor-imagery decoding accuracy target the algorithm; this trial moves the variable to the user, asking whether training the person first changes what the classifier can read. Only the registry record is available, so design and sample size still need checking against the source.

Northwestern Polytechnical University Registers BCI Stroke Rehabilitation Trial With 4 Arms

A newly registered trial tests a brain-computer interface in post-stroke rehabilitation across 4 parallel arms: full cross-domain (emotion-cognition-motor) adaptive training, integrated cognitive and motor task training, single-dimension motor training, and conventional rehabilitation. Each arm plans 22 participants, 88 in total. It enrolls patients aged 30 to 80 with a first cerebral infarction or hemorrhage 3 months to 1 year earlier, unilateral hemiplegia, and upper-limb Brunnstrom stage II to IV. The primary outcome is a motor function score; secondary outcomes include EEG motor imagery event-related synchronization/desynchronization, prefrontal theta/alpha power ratio, and EEG-fNIRS coupling.
Why it matters This trial folds emotion regulation and cognitive tasks into a BCI rehabilitation protocol and compares it against motor-only and conventional rehabilitation, asking whether training more domains beats training the hand alone. With 22 participants per arm and 88 in total, the primary outcome is only a motor function score while EEG measures sit in the secondary outcomes, so it must first show functional improvement before any mechanism claim. First enrolment is set for June 10, 2026, and the trial has not yet started recruiting.

Suzhou Hospital Registers Closed-Loop BCI Trial Using fNIRS and rTMS for Female Overactive Bladder

Women with overactive bladder often rely on drugs and behavioral training, with limited relief. A newly registered trial at The First Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University takes a different route: patients perform a task while functional near-infrared spectroscopy reads prefrontal brain activity, and an algorithm decides when to deliver transcranial magnetic stimulation, closing the loop. The interventional, parallel-design trial plans to enroll 66 women aged 18 to 75, 33 in the experimental arm and 33 in a control arm that receives open-loop sham stimulation, with the overactive bladder symptom score as the primary endpoint. No device model or results are disclosed in the registration, and recruitment has not yet started.
Why it matters Closed-loop neuromodulation for overactive bladder has few publicly registered trials. This one links fNIRS brain-signal reading to rTMS stimulation in a single loop, with an open-loop sham control, testing directly whether reading the brain before stimulating beats a fixed stimulation schedule. It plans 66 participants and uses symptom scores as the primary endpoint, making it an early-stage study with no results yet.
May 2026

ChiCTR Registers Trial of Motor Imagery BCI for Lower-Limb Stroke Rehab

The Chinese Clinical Trial Registry (ChiCTR) has logged a study of how brain-computer interface training built on a motor imagery paradigm affects lower-limb motor function in stroke patients. Registered on May 28, 2026 as ChiCTR2600125562, the trial is recruiting; design, sample size and sponsor are absent from the record carried by the WHO International Clinical Trials Registry Platform (ICTRP) and must be read from the original ChiCTR entry.
Why it matters This one is already enrolling rather than waiting on a start date, which turns it from a registry placeholder into a study with a real timeline for testing whether motor imagery decoding works as well for the legs as for the upper limb.

Shanghai Trial to Test BCI-Driven Lower Limb Exoskeleton in 60 Stroke Patients

The randomized controlled trial plans to enroll 60 patients with lower limb motor impairment after stroke, with the intervention group receiving BCI-assisted exoskeleton rehabilitation training and the control group conventional walking training. Primary outcomes include lower limb surface electromyography, lower limb motor function, the Modified Barthel Index, a balance scale and functional ambulation, testing whether a BCI-driven exoskeleton adds functional benefit over conventional gait training. Punan Hospital, Pudong New Area, Shanghai is the sponsor, with first enrolment set for May 30, 2026. The trial is registered with the Chinese Clinical Trial Registry (ChiCTR) under number ChiCTR2600125531, with a registration date of May 28, 2026, and recruitment has not yet started.
Why it matters Another randomized controlled rehabilitation trial in China pairing a BCI with an exoskeleton, with 30 patients per arm and outcomes spanning surface electromyography, the Modified Barthel Index, balance and functional ambulation rather than walking alone. Punan Hospital, Pudong New Area, Shanghai sponsors it with funding approved under a Pudong Health Commission research project, and first enrolment is set for May 30, 2026, with recruitment not yet started.

Tianjin Plans 10bn Yuan BCI Fund Cluster

The General Office of China's Tianjin Municipal People's Government issued the Action Plan for Promoting Innovative Development of Brain-Computer Interfaces in Tianjin (2026-2030), document number Jin Zheng Ban Fa [2026] No. 8, dated May 26, 2026 and released on May 28. All product targets sit on the non-invasive track, while invasive systems are covered only by milestones for entering registration trials and winning market approval. By 2027 Tianjin wants two to three national-level innovation platforms, more than five non-invasive products in clinical use, more than ten new products across elderly care, education, entertainment, smart living and advanced manufacturing, 50 innovative firms, one to two national standards, and three to five industry funds. By 2030 it targets more than ten non-invasive products in large-scale clinical use, market approval for invasive products, and a fund cluster exceeding 10 billion yuan.
Why it matters Tianjin bets on non-invasive products, national platforms and standard setting rather than competing with Beijing and Shanghai on clinical resources. The 10 billion yuan fund cluster is the most concrete financing target in any provincial document, and the pledge to lead one to two national standards signals an ambition to shape the rulebook.

Xuanwu Hospital Registers BCI Rehabilitation Trial Enrolling 58 Stroke Patients

The randomized controlled trial plans to enroll 58 patients with upper limb motor dysfunction after stroke. The test group will receive feedback-based rehabilitation training through brain-computer interface interaction, while the control group will undergo traditional upper limb circular motion training. The primary outcome is the Fugl-Meyer Motor Assessment-Upper Extremity (FMA-UE), with secondary outcomes covering motor function, daily living activities, quality of life and neurophysiological measures including EEG, transcranial magnetic stimulation and fNIRS. The trial was prospectively registered, with first enrolment set for June 1, 2026, and recruitment has not yet started.
Why it matters Most BCI studies for post-stroke upper limb rehabilitation remain small feasibility efforts. This trial uses a randomized parallel controlled design, sets traditional circular motion training as the comparator, and adds EEG, transcranial magnetic stimulation and fNIRS to its secondary outcomes, meaning it will look not only at whether the hand moves but at what happens in the cortex and neural pathways. A sample of 58 is mid-sized for non-invasive BCI rehabilitation trials, and whether the results can link training effects to neural remodeling depends on enrolment progress after the June 2026 start.

Xuanwu Hospital Registers Trial Combining Non-invasive BCI, Spinal Cord Stimulation and Exoskeleton for Spinal Cord Injury

Can a non-invasive brain-computer interface read motor intention and, combined with spinal cord stimulation and exoskeleton training, improve function after spinal cord injury? Xuanwu Hospital, Capital Medical University has registered a single-arm exploratory trial that plans to enroll 10 patients aged 18 to 65 with spinal cord injury. The intervention combines all three into one rehabilitation regimen. The primary outcome is the overall clinical efficacy rate 6 months after surgery; secondary outcomes include improvement in the Visual Analogue Scale for pain and the incidence of adverse events related to the trial devices.
Why it matters This registered trial combines a non-invasive brain-computer interface, spinal cord stimulation and exoskeleton rehabilitation into one sequential treatment for motor dysfunction of the upper and lower limbs after spinal cord injury. It is single-arm, plans to enroll 10 patients, and lists a first-enrolment date of May 30, 2026. The primary endpoint is read at 6 months after surgery, and recruitment has not yet begun.

Xi'an Jiaotong University Second Hospital Registers BCI Lower-Limb Stroke Trial for 222 Patients

The multicenter randomized controlled trial plans to enroll 222 patients who are 1 to 3 months past their first stroke and have motor impairment in the affected lower limb. The experimental group will receive 4 weeks of motor imagery-based BCI-driven active and passive lower limb training, while the control group gets 4 weeks of conventional training. The primary outcome is the Fugl-Meyer Assessment Lower Extremity Section, with balance, daily living ability and walking classification as secondary outcomes. First enrolment is set for May 31, 2026.
Why it matters The trial pairs motor imagery-based BCI with active and passive lower limb training against a conventional-training control, a design that can show whether the BCI component adds benefit. At 222 participants, it is a comparatively large BCI lower-limb stroke rehabilitation trial in China, and the Fugl-Meyer lower extremity section is a widely accepted scale in the field. First enrolment is set for May 31, 2026, so this is a protocol registration, not an efficacy result.

Xi'an Jiaotong University Second Hospital Registers BCI Ankle Rehabilitation Trial in 120 Stroke Patients

The multicenter randomized controlled trial pits closed-loop BCI ankle training against conventional active and passive ankle training in subacute stroke patients who are 4 to 12 weeks past onset and have less than 10 degrees of active ankle dorsiflexion. Primary endpoints are active ankle dorsiflexion range of motion and Manual Muscle Testing of the ankle; secondary endpoints include Functional Ambulation Classification, the Berg Balance Scale and the Fugl-Meyer Motor Assessment of the Lower Limb. The trial plans to enroll 120 patients, 60 per arm, with first enrolment set for May 31, 2026.
Why it matters Foot drop and ankle inversion after stroke directly limit walking, and conventional rehabilitation often leaves ankle dorsiflexion short. This trial sets closed-loop BCI ankle training against conventional active and passive training in a parallel design, with primary endpoints tied to ankle range of motion and muscle strength rather than broad functional scales. It targets patients 4 to 12 weeks past onset and plans 120 participants, with first enrolment on May 31, 2026, though the registry lists no device model or actual enrolment figures yet.

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