Active clinical trials for "Parkinson Disease"

In this study the investigators are looking at two subtypes of Parkinson Disease (PD); "tremor-dominant" (TD) and postural imbalance and gait disorder (PIGD). This study will use magnet resonance imaging (MRI) to see how the brain reacts while resting and doing a finger-tapping task while on and off PD medication. This study will look at the differences between the two sub-types of PD and healthy volunteers. The investigators will test the hypothesis that connectivity at rest within the motor cortex and between the motor cortex and motor-associated regions such as the supplementary motor area and the pre motor cortex will not be as strong in PIGD compared to TD (increased activity and functional connectivity in TD group)

a data driven approach has identified different cognitive phenotypes in Parkinson's disease (PD) this heterogeneity possibly reflects the diversity of the neuronal damage caused by the disease we hypothesize that the different clinical presentations are associated to specific anatomical and functional correlates

AIM: To validate the tracer [11C]donepezil for use in the parasympathetic nervous system. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The Investigators will include 7 healthy males aged 45-75 in our study. The participants will receive a careful medical examination, including a neurological examination, as part of the inclusion process. The subjects also have an MRI scan of the brain. PET/CT scans with [11C]donepezil are conducted. Six subjects will receive two PET/CT scans - once for the upper abdominal region and once for the head region two evaluate dynamic binding characteristics of the tracer in internal organ. Additionally, one single subject will receive 5 consecutive whole body PET scans to estimate radioactive dosimetry of this tracer. PERSPECTIVES: The study will potentially result in the development of a PET ligand for imaging the parasympathetic nervous system. This will have applications for research in Parkinson's disease, diabetes, heart disease and other disorders, in which the autonomic nervous system is involved

The purpose of this study is to assess the impact of different parameters (voltage, pulse width, frequency) of subthalamic nucleus (STN) deep brain stimulation (DBS) on motor symptoms in patients with Parkinson's disease (PD).

Deep Brain Stimulation (DBS) is an FDA approved, and widely used method for treating the motor symptoms of Parkinson's Disease (PD), Essential Tremor (ET) and Dystonia. Over 100,000 patients worldwide have now been implanted with DBS devices. The DBS target regions in the brain are the Subthalamic nucleus (STN), the Internal Segment of Globus Pallidus (GPi), or the Ventral Intermediate Nucleus of the Thalamus (VIM). In order to place the DBS electrode in the target location, a combination of two 3D imaging techniques; 3D MRI and CT, are used. Data are also collected from individual nerve cells to help find the best location for the DBS electrode in each patient. This electrode recording takes place during the standard surgical implantation of the DBS electrode, and is part of the standard clinical technique. The investigators plan to collect additional data from populations of neurons during the DBS surgery in an effort to further improve the placement of the DBS electrode. These "Local Field Potentials", LFPs, represent the activity of the collection of neurons surrounding the tip of the electrode, and will be measured during surgery along the path used for the placement of the DBS electrode. The goal of this project is to determine whether this additional data from surrounding neurons will help with optimal placement of the DBS electrode.

The overarching goal of this prospective cohort study is to test the hypotheses that greater severity of hyposmia is associated with increased risk of cognitive decline in PD and that worsening hyposmia parallels progressive cholinergic limbic denervation. To achieve the goals of this project, patients with PD without dementia or at-risk of dementia or with dementia will undergo longitudinal olfactory, cognitive and clinical testing for 2-4 years. AChE [11C]PMP or VAchT (vesicular acetylcholine transporter) [F18]-FEOBV PET will be performed both at study entry and at 2-years (± 6 months) follow-up. Brain MRI scans will also be performed at study entry and at 2-years (± 6 months) follow-up. Brain Beta-amyloid PET will be performed at study entry or at 2 years (± 6 months). Annual olfactory testing will be performed to better understand dynamic changes underlying the clinical and PET outcome measures.

Parkinson's disease is diagnosed clinically, because biomarkers that may help in diagnosis and differential diagnosis are not yet available. Exhaled breath testing may yield a "breath-print" that can be used to distinguish healthy and diseased states.

The purpose of the study is to test whether body-worn wireless motion sensors can measure dyskinesias (involuntary movements caused by medications) in individuals with Parkinson disease (PD) independent of voluntary activity being performed and other PD motor symptoms (e.g. tremor).

The purpose of this study is to determine if participants have changes in dopamine cells in their brain using DaTSCAN™ brain imaging. Dopamine cell loss occurs in Parkinson's disease (PD) and other degenerative Parkinsonian disorders, but does not occur in most other movement disorders such as essential tremor or dystonia. DaTSCAN, which is also known as 123I-Ioflupane, is a new compound that has been developed by General Electric, Inc. and has been approved by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to help doctors detect changes in dopamine. This test is performed by injecting DaTSCAN into a vein in the arm, and after a few hours, a large amount of DaTSCAN temporarily accumulates in an area of the brain where there are a lot of dopamine brain cells. Because DaTSCAN contains a small amount of radioactive iodine, it allows doctors to use a special machine called single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) scanning to detect the location and amount of radioactivity in the brain and help determine if there are changes in brain dopamine. It is hoped that this study will help doctors detect the presence of dopamine changes even before symptoms are present. This study will evaluate DaTSCAN in people with PD, those who are at risk for developing PD (e.g., those with idiopathic rapid eye movement sleep disorder (iRBD) and those who are heterozygous or homozygous for Gaucher's disease (GBA) mutations) and those who are healthy volunteers.

To evaluate DBS device settings and match with the features of the DBS care management software.