Clinical trial NCT04660552: Transcranial Photobiomodulation for Reducing Autism Symptoms in Children
Official title: Transcranial Photobiomodulation for Reducing Autism Symptoms in Children
Study type: INTERVENTIONAL
Overall status: COMPLETED
Phase: NA
Conditions: Autism Spectrum Disorder
Lead sponsor: JelikaLite LLC
Sponsor class: INDUSTRY
First posted: 2020-12-09
Enrollment: 34
Sex: ALL
Minimum age (years): 2
Maximum age (years): 6
Standard ages: CHILD
Accepts healthy volunteers: no
Allocation: RANDOMIZED
Intervention model: PARALLEL
Intervention model description: This is a Randomized, Placebo-controlled, Double Blind, Mixed Design study
Primary purpose: TREATMENT

Brief summary: The hypothesis of the study is that photobiomodulation reduces symptoms of autism. Participants will be children between the ages of 2 and 6, who have been diagnosed with moderate to severe autism. Transcranial photobiomodulation will be administered to the children in the experimental condition twice a week for 8 weeks. Results will be measured through parental interviews, standardized CARS2 (Childhood Autism Rating Scales, 2nd Edition) and data collected from EEG.

Detailed description: The CognilumTM System is a non-invasive device that uses infrared light (IR), delivered through light emitting diodes (LEDs) built into a head band worn by the patient during treatment.

The proposed clinical investigation is determined by the FDA to be a nonsignificant risk (NSR) device study.

Eligibility criteria: Inclusion Criteria:

1. Male or female participants between 2 years and 6 years of age (inclusive), of all races.
2. Previously diagnosed with moderate or severe ASD by a licensed professional.
3. Participants may be receiving any behavioral intervention therapy (e.g., ABA, Floor Time) during the course of the treatment. The final statistical analysis will control for the participants receiving behavioral therapies in control and experimental conditions. We expect the majority of the participants in both control and experimental conditions to be receiving behavioral therapies. There is no known interactions or complications of tPBM with behavioral therapy.
4. Parents of participants must understand the nature of the study.
5. Parents of participants must sign an IRB- approved informed consent form before initiation of any study procedures.
6. Parents of participants must have a level of understanding sufficient to communicate with the investigator and study coordinator, and to cooperate with all tests and examinations required by the protocol.
7. Participant child experiencing a major psychiatric disorder will be allowed to participate in the study provided they do not meet any exclusionary criteria.
8. The participant child is willing to participate in this study.

Exclusion Criteria:

1. Participant child is experiencing severe self-injurious behavior or severe aggressive behavior to self or others (within past 7 days).
2. Participant has been diagnosed with another psychiatric or neurological disorder (e.g. epilepsy) or have exhibited symptoms of major psychiatric disorders within the last 30 days.
3. Participant has an unstable medical condition (that requires clinical attention).
4. Participant has a significant skin condition at the procedure sites (i.e., hemangioma, scleroderma, psoriasis, rash, open wound or tattoo).
5. Participant has an implant of any kind in the head (e.g. stent, clipped aneurysm, embolised AVM, implantable shunt - Hakim valve).
6. Participant has receiving medication on a regular basis for Autism or any other medical condition.
7. Any use of light-activated drugs (photodynamic therapy) within 14 days prior to study enrollment (in US: Visudine (verteporfin) - for age related macular degeneration; Aminolevulinic Acid- for actinic keratoses; Photofrin (porfimer sodium) - for esophageal cancer, non-small cell lung cancer; Levulan Kerastick (aminolevulinic acid HCl) - for actinic keratosis; 5-aminolevulinic acid (ALA)- for non-melanoma skin cancer).
8. Current treatment with a psychotropic medication.
9. Investigator and his/her immediate family, defined as the investigator's child or grandchild.

Primary outcomes:
measure: Change in Autism Symptoms
timeFrame: 8 weeks
Secondary outcomes:
Other outcomes:
Locations:
city: Brooklyn
country: United States
facility: Dr. Steingold Psychology PC
state: New York
city: New York
country: United States
facility: Dr. Steingold Psychology PC
state: New York
Study officials:
affiliation: RDT Group NJ
name: Yuli Fradkin, MD
role: PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR
References:
citation: Bosl WJ, Tager-Flusberg H, Nelson CA. EEG Analytics for Early Detection of Autism Spectrum Disorder: A data-driven approach. Sci Rep. 2018 May 1;8(1):6828. doi: 10.1038/s41598-018-24318-x.
citation: Hamblin MR. Shining light on the head: Photobiomodulation for brain disorders. BBA Clin. 2016 Oct 1;6:113-124. doi: 10.1016/j.bbacli.2016.09.002. eCollection 2016 Dec.
citation: Henderson TA, Morries LD. Near-infrared photonic energy penetration: can infrared phototherapy effectively reach the human brain? Neuropsychiatr Dis Treat. 2015 Aug 21;11:2191-208. doi: 10.2147/NDT.S78182. eCollection 2015.
citation: Khuman J, Zhang J, Park J, Carroll JD, Donahue C, Whalen MJ. Low-level laser light therapy improves cognitive deficits and inhibits microglial activation after controlled cortical impact in mice. J Neurotrauma. 2012 Jan 20;29(2):408-17. doi: 10.1089/neu.2010.1745. Epub 2011 Sep 21.
citation: Leisman G, Machado C, Machado Y, Chinchilla-Acosta M. Effects of Low-Level Laser Therapy in Autism Spectrum Disorder. Adv Exp Med Biol. 2018;1116:111-130. doi: 10.1007/5584_2018_234.
citation: Weissman JR, Kelley RI, Bauman ML, Cohen BH, Murray KF, Mitchell RL, Kern RL, Natowicz MR. Mitochondrial disease in autism spectrum disorder patients: a cohort analysis. PLoS One. 2008;3(11):e3815. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0003815. Epub 2008 Nov 26.
citation: Fradkin Y, De Taboada L, Naeser M, Saltmarche A, Snyder W, Steingold E. Transcranial photobiomodulation in children aged 2-6 years: a randomized sham-controlled clinical trial assessing safety, efficacy, and impact on autism spectrum disorder symptoms and brain electrophysiology. Front Neurol. 2024 Apr 26;15:1221193. doi: 10.3389/fneur.2024.1221193. eCollection 2024.