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Intermittent Hypoxia Clinical Trials for Spinal Cord Injury

SCI.help tracks 38 spinal cord injury clinical trials studying intermittent hypoxia, and 12 are open to new participants. Each links to its full ClinicalTrials.gov record. Last refreshed 2026-09-12.

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This is research, not treatment. A clinical trial is a study. It may involve a placebo, carries unknown risks, and is not a substitute for proven care. Be wary of any "trial" that charges you to take part. Talk with your SCI doctor before enrolling, and read the full eligibility and risks on ClinicalTrials.gov. Not medical advice.

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Open and recruiting (12)

These trials are recruiting, about to recruit, or enrolling by invitation. Status comes straight from ClinicalTrials.gov and can change without notice.

  • RecruitingNCT06011876

    BioFLO for Respiratory Recovery in SCI

    Acute intermittent hypoxia (AIH) involves brief (1 min), repeated episodes (\~15) of breathing low oxygen air to stimulate spinal neuroplasticity.

    Intermittent HypoxiaBreathing Function
    1 US site · Florida
  • RecruitingNCT05467215

    Can Brief Exposure to Hyperoxia Improve Function After Chronic Spinal Cord Injury?

    This proof-of-principle study will determine if breathing an increased concentration of oxygen above the concentration in normal room air results in changes in the sensory and motor function in people with subacute or chronic, severe spinal cord injury (SCI).

    Intermittent HypoxiaRegeneration
    Canada
  • RecruitingNCT05563103

    Combination Therapy to Improve SCI Recovery.

    The purpose of this study is to determine how combining bouts of low oxygen, transcutaneous spinal cord stimulation, and walking training may improve walking function for people with chronic spinal cord injury.

    Intermittent HypoxiaTranscutaneous StimulationWalking Function
    2 US sites · Illinois, Massachusetts
  • Not yet recruitingNCT05217498

    Combining Low Oxygen Therapy and an Adenosine A2a Receptor Antagonist to Improve Functional Mobility After Spinal Cord Injury

    Breathing brief, moderate bouts of low oxygen trigger (low oxygen therapy, LOT) spinal plasticity (the ability of the nervous system to strengthen neural pathways based on new experiences), and improve walking after spinal cord injury (SCI).

    Intermittent HypoxiaRehabilitationWalking Function
    1 US site · Massachusetts
  • RecruitingNCT07739992

    Dose Optimization Study of Acute Intermittent Hypoxia in Spinal Cord Injury

    This study aims to evaluate how different doses of acute intermittent hypoxia (AIH) affect lower-limb strength, reaction time, and responsiveness in individuals with spinal cord injury (SCI).

    Intermittent HypoxiaLeg MovementMotor Function
    1 US site · Illinois
  • RecruitingNCT02323945

    Effects of Breathing Mild Bouts of Low Oxygen on Limb Mobility After Spinal Injury

    Accumulating evidence suggests that repeatedly breathing low oxygen levels for brief periods (termed intermittent hypoxia) is a safe and effective treatment strategy to promote meaningful functional recovery in persons with chronic spinal cord injury (SCI).

    Intermittent HypoxiaWalking Function
    1 US site · Massachusetts
  • Enrolling by invitationNCT06906536

    Examining the Effect of Acute Intermittent Hypoxia on Serum Blood Proteins and Lower Limb Function

    The goal of this study is to clarify mechanisms of acute intermittent hypoxia and to examine the effect on lower limb function in persons with chronic, incomplete spinal cord injury.

    Intermittent HypoxiaRehabilitationRegeneration
    1 US site · Colorado
  • RecruitingNCT07002437

    Hypoxia Pathways for Early Recovery After Spinal Cord Injury

    Spinal cord injury (SCI) disrupts neural pathways to respiratory motor neurons, diminishing breathing capacity and airway defense (e.g., cough). Indeed, respiratory impairment is a leading cause of infection, re-hospitalization and death after SCI.

    Intermittent HypoxiaBreathing Function
    1 US site · Florida
  • RecruitingNCT06521723

    Low Oxygen Therapy to Enhance Walking Recovery After SCI.

    The purpose of this study is to determine how combining bouts of low oxygen, transcutaneous spinal cord stimulation, and walking training may improve walking function for people with chronic spinal cord injury of different age groups.

    Intermittent HypoxiaRehabilitationTranscutaneous StimulationWalking Function
    2 US sites · Florida, Massachusetts
  • RecruitingNCT05351827

    Mild Intermittent Hypoxia: A Prophylactic for Autonomic Dysfunction in Individuals With Spinal Cord Injuries

    The prevalence of autonomic dysfunction and sleep disordered breathing (SDB) is increased in individuals with spinal cord injury (SCI).

    Intermittent HypoxiaBlood Pressure
    1 US site · Michigan
  • RecruitingNCT07583498

    Spasticity in SCI Following Acute Intermittent Hypoxia

    This study aims to observe the effects of administration of a breathing intervention (Acute Intermittent Hypoxia (AIH)) on spasticity (tightness) in individuals with incomplete Spinal Cord Injury.

    Intermittent HypoxiaSpasticity
    1 US site · Illinois
  • RecruitingNCT07465302

    Treating Spinal Cord Injury With Early Normobaric Hyperoxia

    SpiCoH is a phase IIa, single center, open-label, clinical trial of intermittent normobaric hyperoxia in mechanically ventilated patients with traumatic cervical and/or thoracic spinal cord injury.

    Intermittent Hypoxia
    1 US site · Florida

Running, but closed to new participants (3)

Active studies that are no longer enrolling. Useful for seeing where the field is heading.

  • Active, not recruitingNCT03644277

    A Multi-Center Clinical Trial in Individuals With Spinal Cord Injury

    The overall objective of this project is to investigate the effectiveness of daily acute intermittent hypoxia therapy (dAIH), coupled with massed practice training, to improve upper-extremity function in individuals with chronic incomplete cervical SCI.

    Intermittent HypoxiaArm MovementHand Movement
    3 US sites · Illinois, New Jersey
  • Active, not recruitingNCT02632422

    AIH-induced Walking Recovery After Subacute SCI

    The purpose of this study is to determine how mild breathing bouts of low oxygen may restore walking and leg strength in persons who have sustained a spinal cord injury.

    Intermittent HypoxiaWalking Function
    2 US sites · Georgia, Massachusetts
  • Active, not recruitingNCT02274116

    Acute Intermittent Hypoxia on Leg Function Following Spinal Cord Injury

    The purpose of this study is to determine how the nervous system controlling leg muscles is altered following spinal cord injury and how they may be affected by brief periods of low oxygen inhalation over time.

    Intermittent HypoxiaRehabilitation
    1 US site · Massachusetts

Completed and closed (23)

Completed, terminated, withdrawn, or last reported with an unknown status. Completed trials are where published results come from.

  • Terminated NCT03780829 AIH for Spinal Cord Repair
  • Completed NCT02441179 Acute Intermittent Hypoxia and Body Weight Supported Treadmill Training for Incomplete Spinal Cord Injury Patients
  • Unknown NCT03262766 Daily Intermittent Hypoxia and Task-Specific Upper Limb Training in Persons With Chronic Incomplete SCI
  • Completed NCT05491837 Device-induced Intermittent Hypoxia in Persons With Incomplete Spinal Cord Injury
  • Completed NCT03643770 Effect of a Novel Intervention Using Daily Intermittent Hypoxia and High Intensity Training on Upper Limb Function in Individuals With Spinal Cord Injury
  • Completed NCT01272011 Effects of Breathing and Walking Treatments on Recovery Post-Spinal Cord Injury
  • Completed NCT02323698 Effects of Caffeine and Intermittent Hypoxia on Leg Function in Human Spinal Cord Injury
  • Completed NCT02973438 Effects of Intermittent Hypoxia (IH) on Metabolism and Dysglycemia, in Overweight/Obese Persons SCI
  • Completed NCT03833674 FLO2 for Recovery After SCI
  • Completed NCT03752749 Impact of Intermittent Hypoxia and Prednisolone on Motor Performance in Persons With SCI
  • Completed NCT01272349 Intermittent Hypoxia Elicits Prolonged Restoration of Motor Function in Human SCI
  • Completed NCT05513911 Intermittent Hypoxia and Upper Extremity EMG Recordings in Individuals With Spinal Cord Injury
  • Completed NCT03071393 Intermittent Hypoxia to Enhance Motor Function After Spinal Cord Injury
  • Completed NCT05183113 Measuring the Neurological Benefits of Intermittent Hypoxia Therapy With MRI
  • Unknown NCT03736382 Mild Intermittent Hypoxia and Its Multipronged Effect on Sleep Apnea
  • Completed NCT04017767 Motor Plasticity, Intermittent Hypoxia and Sleep Apnea
  • Completed NCT05391308 Overnight Upper Airway Infiltration in Spinal Cord Injury
  • Terminated NCT04854057 Pairing Intermittent Hypoxia and Transcutaneous Electrical Spinal Cord Stimulation to Promote Arm Use After Cervical SCI
  • Unknown NCT03433599 Repetitive Acute Intermittent Hypoxia for Spinal Cord Repair
  • Completed NCT03922802 SCI Acute Intermittent Hypoxia and Non-Invasive Spinal Stimulation Combined With Gait Training
  • Completed NCT01272336 Study Effects of Intermittent Hypoxia on Restoring Hand Function Following SCI
  • Completed NCT05341466 The Effect of Acute Intermittent Hypoxia on Motor Learning
  • Unknown NCT03774043 Timing and Dosage of Acute Intermittent Hypoxia in Persons With SCI

Where this list comes from

Trials are pulled daily from the ClinicalTrials.gov registry and tagged by what they study and what they target. This page reflects the 2026-09-12 refresh of the 2,167 spinal cord injury trials SCI.help tracks. Eligibility criteria, study contacts, exact sites, and results live on each trial's ClinicalTrials.gov record, linked above. The full dataset is public at /data/sci_trials.min.json.

Before contacting a study team, read clinical trials and SCI research, honestly and how to spot a predatory "trial".