Exercise as a Primer for Brain Stimulation in Vascular Cognitive Impairment No Dementia (VCIND) (EXPRESS-V)
Vascular Cognitive Impairment, Mild Cognitive Impairment
About this trial
This is an interventional treatment trial for Vascular Cognitive Impairment focused on measuring transcranial direct current stimulation, tDCS, exercise, cognition, vascular cognitive impairment no dementia, vascular mild cognitive impairment
Eligibility Criteria
Inclusion Criteria:
- ≥50 years of age; females must be post-menopausal
- Presence of cerebrovascular and/or cardiovascular risk factors or coronary artery disease
- Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) <27
- Sufficiently proficient in English
- Must be able to exercise at a moderate intensity level
- Presence of modest deficits (1 standard deviation below population norm) in one of the following domains: executive function, verbal memory, working memory, or visuospatial memory
Exclusion Criteria:
- History of stroke
- Change in psychotropics within the last 4 weeks
- Current benzodiazepine use due
- Metal implants that would preclude safe use of tDCS or neuroimaging
- Significant neurological or psychiatric conditions (current major depressive disorder, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia)
- MoCA <18 and/or clinical diagnosis of dementia
- Any medical contraindications to exercise
Sites / Locations
- Sunnybrook Health Sciences CentreRecruiting
Arms of the Study
Arm 1
Arm 2
Arm 3
Arm 4
Experimental
Other
Other
Other
Exercise primed tDCS
Exercise primed Sham stimulation
Treatment as usual (exercise education) & tDCS
Treatment as usual (exercise education) & sham stimulation
Individuals randomized to this group will receive exercise at University Health Network-Toronto Rehabilitation Institute followed by active tDCS.
Individuals randomized to this group will receive exercise at University Health Network-Toronto Rehabilitation Institute followed by sham tDCS.
Individuals randomized to this group will receive routine advice about physical activity, and active tDCS.
Individuals randomized to this group will receive routine advice about physical activity, and sham tDCS.