Transcranial focused ultrasound (tFUS) is a new noninvasive way to stimulate the brain in an awake and alert person. We do not yet have an easily observable way to know whether we are in the right brain location with the correct dose for that person. We wonder if we can produce a transient change in someone's visual field, called a scotoma, and whether we can use that to determine the minimum tFUS dose for that person.

This is a research study to find out if Qutenza 8% capsaicin topical system is safe and effective when treating subjects with lower back pain (LBP) that is caused by damage at or near the nerve's root in the lower back leg (lumbosacral radiculopathy) which is pain that can move all the way down the back of the leg. The pain may also start outside of the spinal cord, in the peripheral nerves and may also be felt all the way down the back of the leg (neuropathic LBP). Qutenza 8% capsaicin, the study drug, is currently FDA approved to treat nerve pain after a shingles outbreak in addition to a type of nerve pain in the feet associated with diabetes. In this study a maximum of four patches per visit (sized 14cm x 20 cm) will be used to deliver the Qutenza 8% capsaicin to your skin.

If a subject meets the qualifications for this study, in addition to their standard of care for their LBP, they will be treated with Qutenza 8% capsaicin topical system and can expect to have a total of 5 visits in a 12 month period. Each visit will require subjects to fill out several surveys and receive treatment patches for their LBP (your doctor will decide if you will need to be retreated at each visit based on your symptoms). This is an open-label study and all participants will receive Qutenza 8% capsaicin topical system. The study visits are estimated to take 90 minutes upwards to 120 minutes.

The purpose of this study is to explore whether a non-invasive form of ear stimulation called transcutaneous auricular vagus nerve stimulation (taVNS) can change the way you perceive pain. We will recruit up to 20 participants with chronic post-stroke upper extremity pain. The goal is to determine if there is a pain reduction after ear stimulation.

We will determine if aerobic exercise (AEx) and/or repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) are effective in treating symptoms of depression following stroke. This project is based on the idea that depression negatively affects the brain so that it doesn't change in the same way following treatment, the result being less effective recovery. We believe that effective treatment for depression will help improve how the brain in people with depression responds to other types of treatment. That is, effectively treating depression will enable individuals to better recover other forms of function following their stroke.