Active clinical trials for "Movement Disorders"

The purpose of this study is to understand variation in the symptoms of Parkinson disease. This study uses an iPhone app to record these symptoms through questionnaires and sensors.

The diagnosis and management of movement disorders, such as Parkinson's disease (PD), parkinson-plus syndromes (PPS), dystonia, essential tremor (ET), normal pressure hydrocephalus (NPH) and others is challenging given the lack of objective diagnostic and monitoring tools with high sensitivity and specificity. A cornerstone in research of neurological disorders manifesting as MDi is the investigation of neurophysiological changes as potential biomarkers that could help in diagnosis, monitoring disease progression and response to therapies. Such a neuro-marker that would overcome the major disadvantages of clinical questionnaires and rating scales (such as the Unified Parkinson's disease rating scale -UPDRS, for PD, The Essential Tremor Rating Assessment Scale -TETRAS, for ET and others), including low test-retest repeatability and subjective judgment of different raters, would have real impact on disease diagnosis and choice of interventions and monitoring of effects of novel therapeutics, including disease modifying therapies. To address this, ElMindA has developed over the last decade a non-invasive, low-cost technology named Brain Network Activation (BNA), which is a new imaging approach that can detect changes in brain activity and functional connectivity. Results from proof-of concept studies on PD patients have demonstrated that: 1) PD patients exhibited a significant decrease in BNA scores relatively to healthy controls; 2) notable changes in functional network activity in correlation with different dopamine-agonist doses; 3) significant correlation between BNA score and the UPDRS). 4) BNA could also differentiate early PD from healthy controls

Parkinson's disease (PD) is characterized by bradykinesia, rigidity, and tremor. Several scientific pieces of evidence, based on the use of kinematic techniques, have allowed quantifying objectively the alterations of the voluntary movement in the different stages of the disease. In recent years, several studies using transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) techniques, have also shown abnormalities in neurophysiological parameters of the primary motor cortex (M1) in patients with MP, in particular, a reduction in cortical excitability and synaptic plasticity of M1. In addition to the central role played by a dopaminergic deficit in MP, recent evidence suggests a possible involvement of the neurotransmitter glutamatergic system. In the present monocentric observational study, the investigators propose to assess possible correlations between polymorphisms of metabotropic glutamate type 3 receptors (mGlu3), clinical evaluation scales, alterations of kinematic motion parameters and neurophysiological parameters of M1.

The movement control of shoulder joint relies not only on the glenohumeral joint, but also the critical contributions from scapulothoracic joint. The relating scapula muscle strength, scapula mobility and, the most important of all, the capacity of neuromuscular control should be integrated into the rehabilitation program for patients with shoulder disorders. With regarding to the subacromial impingement syndrome or rotator tendinopathy, the status of scapula dyskinesia and dysfunctions were improved significantly after the intervention of scapula-emphasized exercise. But there was no study addressed the relationships between stiffness of relating muscles and the deficits of scapula movement. The stiffness had been shown to serve an important role in functional performance of the corresponding joint. For example, the decreased elasticity of supraspinatus muscle was noticed on affected side comparing in patients with impingement syndrome.Few studies examined the effects of altered muscle stiffness on kinematic performance in shoulder complex. Laudner et al. found that the stiffer the latismuss dorsi muscle was, the less upward rotation and posterior tilting, and the more internal rotation of scapula during arm elevation was exhibited in asymptomatic swimmers. Another study showed that the increased range of external rotation and posterior tilt of scapula during arm elevation were associated with the decreased stiffness of pectoralis minor. The recent study presented that the electromyographic activities and elasticities of middle deltoid, supraspinatus, and infraspinatus muscles correlated significantly with the tissue elasticity during shoulder movement in healthy shoulder. However, there was no scientific information directly to prove the changes in characteristics of rotator cuff function as well as the impacts on kinematic control of shoulder complex. Therefore, the aim of this study is to examine the relationship among characteristics of muscle properties and kinematic control healthy swimmers.

Objectives: To generate pilot data to investigate the feasibility and the potential use in clinical practice of technology based objective measures of motor performances in patients affected by different movement disorders. To correlate kinematics findings with demographic and clinical details. Trial design and methods: Participants enrolled in prof. Bhatia's movement disorders clinic, will be classifies according to the main movement disorder, specifically, tremor, parkinsonism, dystonia, chorea, ataxia. In the study visit (one day only), they will undergo a clinical evaluation using the appropriate clinical scales (respectively, Fahn-Tolosa-Marin tremor rating scale, MDS-UPDRS Part III, Toronto Western Spasmodic Torticollis Rating Scale 2, Unified Hungtington Disease Rating scale and Scale for the Assessment and Rating of Ataxia) and a kinematic evaluation, using wearables and an infra-red and LED markers system. Then the protocol is concluded and they will continue the routine clinical follow-up

High-frequency deep brain stimulation (DBS) is an effective treatment strategy for a variety of movement disorders including Parkinson's disease, dystonia and tremor1-5, as well as for other neurological and psychiatric disorders e.g. obsessive compulsive disorder, depression, cluster headache, Tourette syndrome, epilepsy and eating disorders6-11. It is currently applied in a continuous fashion, using parameters set by the treating clinician. This approach is non-physiological, as it applies a constant, unchanging therapy to a dysfunctional neuronal system that would normally fluctuate markedly on a moment-by moment basis, depending on external stressors, cognitive load, physical activity and the timing of medication administration. Fluctuations in physical symptoms reflect fluctuations in brain activity. Tracking and responding in real-time to these would allow personalised approaches to DBS through stimulating at appropriate intensities and only when necessary, thereby improving therapeutic efficacy, preserving battery life and potentially limiting side-effects12. Critical to the development of such adaptive/closed-loop DBS technologies is the identification of robust signals on which to base the delivery of variable high-frequency deep brain stimulation. Local field potentials (LFPs), which are recordable through standard DBS electrodes, represent synchronous neuronal discharges within the basal ganglia. Different LFP signatures have been identified in different disorders, as well as in different clinical states within individual disorders. For example, low frequency LFPs in the Alpha/Theta ranges (4-12Hz) are frequently encountered in patients with Dystonia13,14, while both beta (12-30Hz) gamma (60-90Hz) band frequencies may be seen in Parkinson's disease, when the patient is OFF and dyskinetic, respectively15,16. Equally, suppression of these abnormal basal ganglia signals through medication administration or high-frequency DBS correlates with clinical improvement. As such, they represent attractive electrophysiologic biomarkers on which to base adaptive DBS approaches. Until recently, neurophysiological assessments were purely a research tool, as they could only be recorded either intra-operatively or for a short period of time post-operatively using externalised DBS electrodes. However, advances in DBS technology now allow real-time LFP recordings to be simply and seamlessly obtained from fully implanted DBS systems e.g. Medtronic Percept PC. In this study, we will evaluate a cohort of patients with movement disorders and other disorders of basal ganglia circuitry who have implanted DBS systems. Recordings of LFPs and/or non-invasive data such as EEG, limb muscle activation and movement (surface EMG and motion tracking) under various conditions (e.g. voluntary movement, ON/OFF medications, ON/OFF stimulation) will allow us to evaluate their utility as markers of underlying disease phenotype and severity and to assess their potential for use as electrophysiological biomarkers in adaptive DBS approaches. These evaluations in patients with DBS systems with and without LFP-sensing capabilities will take place during a single or multi-day evaluation (depending on patient preference and researcher availability). This study will advance not only the understanding of subcortical physiology in various disorders, but will also provide information about how neurophysiological and behavioural biomarkers can be used to inform personalised, precision closed-loop DBS approaches.

The purpose of this study is to record electrical brain activity during DBS surgery and after DBS surgery using the Medtronic Activa PC+S deep brain stimulation (DBS) system, a modified DBS pulse generator. The goal of the study is to investigate if the electrical brain activity can help customize DBS therapy.

Background: - Some people with movement disorders are in another NIH protocol. They will have electrodes placed in deep brain areas. They may do tasks before, during, and after surgery. Researchers want to learn more about how brain cells and networks work while people learn and remember. They want to use the data from the other NIH study to do this. Objective: - To share data from before and during deep brain stimulation surgery. The data will be used in a study of how the brain learns and remembers. Eligibility: - People at least 18 years old who are in protocol 11-N-0211 and have certain movement disorders. Design: As part of protocol 11-N-0211, data on participants brainwave activity is collected. In this protocol, they will have that data stored and shared. Researchers will access imaging data from deep brain stimulation surgery. Researchers will access other medical records.

Development of a new mass spectrometry-based biomarker for the ear-ly and sensitive diagnosis of the Creatine Deficiency Syndromes from dry-blood-spot sample

Objective The objective of this pilot study is to characterize the abnormal neuronal firing patterns of basal ganglia neurons and those in the premotor cortex in patients with treatment-resistant movement disorders undergoing deep brain stimulation (DBS) surgery. Study population Fifteen adult patients with treatment-resistant movement disorders who are undergoing deep brain stimulation surgery at Suburban Hospital, Bethesda, Maryland, will be studied. Design This is a physiology study of treatment-resistant movement disorder patients who have been scheduled for implantation of a deep brain stimulation device into the Nucleus accumbens. Prior to surgery, patients will learn a rewarded visual-motor task and undergo magnetoencephalography. The task will be repeated during DBS surgery, with collection of information on electrical activity including single neuronal unit and local field potentials. The task and MEG will be repeated 3-4 months after surgery. The collected data will be analyzed for coherence patterns during rest and rewarded movements. Outcome measures We plan to characterize and quantify the oscillatory activity present in motor circuits of treatment-resistant movement disorder patients during rewarded visually guided movements. We hypothesize that during visually guided movements, neuronal coherence will be significantly increased relative to resting periods. Thus, by better understanding the alteration in oscillatory patterns in these patients, we hope to develop better DBS stimulation paradigms in order to better treat this disease in the future.