Active clinical trials for "Paresis"

Introduction: It is suggested that increased cortical activity, induced by cerebral stimulation associated or not with other rehabilitation techniques, may potentiate the motor and functional therapeutic effects in individuals with neurological deficits. Objectives: To evaluate the electrical activity of the anterior tibial muscle (TA) and postural control of individuals with hemiparesis due to stroke following treatment with transcranial direct current (tDCS) stimulation and functional electrical stimulation (FES), associated or isolated). (EMG) and postural control by the Balance Evaluation Systems Test (BESTest). Both of which were collected at four different time points: pre-treatment, immediately after 10 treatment sessions, and 30 days follow-up after the interventions. Patients will be randomized into 4 experimental groups: tDCS anodic active + active FES+ active contraction TA, tDCS sham + active FES+ active contraction TA, tDCS anodic active+ placebo FES+ active contraction TA, tDCS sham+ FES sham+ active contraction TA. tDCS (2mA) will be applied over the motor (Cz) and cathodic vertex over the supraorbital region of the normal hemisphere and FES over hemiparetic TA by a researcher who will not be the one who will evaluate the anesthesia patient. The treatment will last 10 sessions, twice a week, with a time of 20 minutes.

Rationale: About 80% of stroke patients suffer motor impairments, but current therapies have limited effects on motor recovery. Therefore, investigating new potential therapeutic approaches is crucial. Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation (tDCS) is a form of non-invasive electrical stimulation where a weak current is applied through electrodes over the scalp. This stimulation is known to (1) induce changes in neuronal excitability -which can last up to one day with late LTP-like plasticity protocols in a polarity and site-specific manner, and (2) facilitate motor learning and stroke recovery. So far, several pilot studies have reported beneficial results from tDCS in both subacute and chronic stroke patients, but it's still unclear how tDCS should be repeated over multiple days to optimally enhance recovery and training effects. Using a late LTP-like plasticity protocol could increase effectiveness of standard clinical care rehabilitation sessions and thus enhance the effects of rehabilitation. Therefore, the investigators want to investigate how late LTP-like plasticity tDCS affects rehabilitation in subacute stroke patients. The outcome of this study can provide important guidelines on effective motor therapy during stroke rehabilitation. Objective: Identify the effect of late LTP-like plasticity on motor rehabilitation during the subacute phase after stroke. Study design: Double-blinded, randomized between-subjects trials. Study population: Subacute stroke patients. Main study parameters/endpoints: The primary outcome measure is the upper limb motor function during the subacute phase after stroke.

To evaluate the efficacy of treatment with the Pilates Method in postural alignment and its correlation with the respiratory capacity of individuals with hemiparesis, with the aid of biomedical instrumentation, comparing the method performed in soil and therapy pool.

The hemiparesis is one of the most important sequelae of stroke, and generally have greater impairment in the upper limb (UL) contralateral to the brain injury. To obtain greater amount of use and most affected UL movement quality, studies have described as a rehabilitation technique constraint Induced Therapy (CIT). The objectives of this study will evaluate the effect of CIT in severe hemiparetics patients in the quantity and quality of movement UL and grip strength, and the relation between the scapular kinematics and trunk with the quality of movement measured clinically. Randomized crossover study with systematic reviews in AB mode, where A is the baseline to the evaluation of the period of 2 weeks without any intervention and B, the two-week period with intervention. One group will start with the intervention period (BA) and the other group with the period without intervention (AB). The intervention will be for 3 hours / day, 5x / week for two weeks and use of wrist and fingers restriction UL unaffected. To evaluate the quality and quantity of UL use in real environment will be used to Motor Activity Log (MAL), to quantify the motor skill the Wolf Motor Function Test (WMFT), the 3D movement of the scapula and trunk during arm elevation and functional activities of the UL will be measured by the electromagnetic tracking system and grip strength by hand dynamometer.

The cervical spine is most commonly injured, accounting for 53.4% of spinal injuries. More than 40% of all spinal injuries occur at either C4, C5 or C6 levels leading to variable loss of function in the upper extremities. Traditionally, patients sustaining a cervical spine injury were followed for 2 years to ensure that recovery had stabilized before offering upper extremity reconstruction. This type of reconstruction includes active muscle transfer, tendon transfer and joint fusion. Patients are most commonly assessed immediately at the time of injury. Muscle testing is commonly performed using Medical Research Grading System (MRC). Although complete neurologic stabilization may not be complete until 2 years post-injury, in the group with initial grade 0 muscle strength after the acute phase of injury, expectations of improved muscle strength to or beyond grade 3 after 4-6 months is minimal. And grade 3 muscle strength is felt to be the minimum useful functional strength in a muscle group. The investigators propose an early nerve reconstruction approach to the tetraplegic patient with dysfunction of the upper extremity to augment the available tendon transfers. A comparative pilot study is proposed to determine the effectiveness of supinator branch to posterior interosseous nerve (PIN) transfer in 5 patients with cervical spine injury. Patient who fits inclusion criteria will be offered the opportunity to be involved in the study and reviewed at 6 months from injury. If the patient still has not regained Grade 3 power in finger or thumb extension, they will be randomized to be in a surgical group or non-surgical group. If informed consent is obtained, then surgery will be completed between 6-9 months from the patient's original cervical spine injury. The patient will be followed at regular intervals post-operatively with expectation of 18-24 month follow-up. Measures will be used pre and post-operatively for comparison. Measures will include MRC muscle grade (EDC), range of motion, Disability of the Arm, Shoulder, and Hand Questionnaire (DASH), and The Graded Redefined Assessment of Strength Sensibility and Prehension (GRASSP) (Kalsi-Ryan, 2011).

The purpose of this research study is to evaluate the effectiveness of functional electrical stimulation (FES) provided by an implanted pulse generator (IPG) in correcting hip, knee and ankle function to improve walking in people with partial paralysis.

Pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) is a disease that causes raised blood pressure in blood vessels that pick up oxygen from the lungs. It has a life expectancy similar to some cancers. There is treatment available but there is no cure. We now know that PAH is associated with weakness in the muscles in the legs, which contributes to the symptoms patients' experience. Researchers believe that certain proteins found in high levels in the blood of patients with other chronic diseases can affect muscle function and growth. One of these proteins is called growth differentiating factor (GDF) 8, high levels of which are associated with muscle weakness in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease(COPD) and heart failure (HF). Interestingly there are drugs available which block the actions of GDF-8 on muscle cells which has been shown in animals to result in increased muscle size. A related protein called GDF-15 is found in elevated levels in patients PAH, and is linked to prognosis. Our preliminary data suggests that GDF-15 can also directly influence muscle size in a number of situations. We aim to investigate the role of GDF-15 and related molecules in the development of muscle weakness in patients with PAH. We will do this by measuring certain markers of muscle weakness and taking blood and muscle samples in patients and controls. We will then compare the levels of GDF-15 in these tissues in those with and without muscle wasting. We hope this work will lead to a greater understanding of the role of GDF-15 in the development of muscle weakness in patients with PAH. GDF-15 levels may be important in allowing us to define which patients have muscle weakness. In the future we aim to perform a clinical trial of drugs which block the actions of GDF-15.

Motor deficits are common after stroke, being one of the major causes of disability in this population. Because of the impact that motor impairments have in the life of patients and the associated financial costs, it is a health care priority to develop effective and efficient treatments to restore motor deficits. Music-supported therapy (MST) has been recently developed to enhance the use of the affected extremity after stroke. In the present project, a new multidisciplinary approach (neurology, neuropsychology, music and cognitive neurosciences) will be undertaken in order to investigate the effectiveness of MST as a neurorehabilitation technique to restore the motor function in stroke patients. In addition, the complex pattern of reorganization of the sensorimotor system will be studied in order to provide information about the physiological mechanisms underlying the neurorehabilitation process. A randomized controlled trial is proposed to compare for first time the effectiveness of MST (at the hospital and at home) compared to conventional treatment in subacute stroke patients suffering from motor deficits. Our hypothesis is that patients will experience a large improvement in the functional use of the affected arm due to the implementation of the MST program when compared to conventional treatment. We also expect to observe improvements in cognitive functions, mood and quality of life. Besides, we hypothesize that these amelioration in motor and cognitive domains will be accompanied by neuroplastic changes in the sensorimotor cortex and corticospinal tract.

Evaluate the effectiveness of virtual therapy and conventional physiotherapy in spastic muscles of patients with sequelae of stroke.

The addition of a self-rehabilitation program to repeated Botulinum Toxin Injections (BTI) and usual physiotherapy should increase the proportion of patients who attain their Primary Treatment Goal (impairments and function) more than usual care (involving repeated Botulinum Toxin Injections and conventional physiotherapy), in post stroke out-patients with spasticity.