Active clinical trials for "Parkinson Disease"

In patients with Parkinson's disease, the characteristic motor symptoms, i.e., slowness of movement (bradykinesia), tremor and rigidity, are consequences of the progressive degeneration of neurons containing and releasing dopamine. The first-line treatment of Parkinson´s is oral administration of levodopa - a precursor to dopamine that (unlike dopamine) passes the blood brain barrier. After the first few years of treatment with levodopa, many patients do however develop a highly variable response to the drug characterised by rapid shifts between impaired locomotion and drug induced dyskinesias (referred to as the on-off syndrome). This is cased by the marked variation in serum levodopa levels following per oral administration, and it is known that intravenous administration of levodopa give a more stable level of levodopa with improved on-off symptoms. Levodopa-carbidopa intestinal gel (LCIG) - under the name of Duodopa® - is delivered directly to the proximal jejunum via a tube connected to a portable infusion pump. Infusion of Duodopa in the jejunum bypasses gastric emptying, helping to avoid the fluctuation in plasma levodopa levels. However, while clearly confirming that an even administration of levodopa is of considerable benefit to Parkinson patients with on-off symptomatology, the LCIG approach is marred by the need for surgery (for the insertion of the intestinal tube) and various possible complications following this, as well as by side effects such as abdominal pain. Researchers have now succeeded in producing a physiologically acceptable levodopa solution (called Infudopa) in a concentration allowing for a continuous intravenous (i.v.) or subcutaneous (s.c.) administration of therapeutic doses to humans. Early experience of this strategy confirms that both s.c. and i.v. administration of this solution results in even serum levodopa levels and markedly improved motor functioning. The aim of this study is to compare the pharmacokinetic profile of Infudopa administered i.v. and s.c. with that of Duodopa administered enterally in parkinsonian patients with on-off complications.

This study occurs during five visits that are already scheduled as part of "Biomarkers to Guide Directional DBS for Parkinson's Disease" (ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT03353688). If participants have dystonia associated with Parkinson's disease, the investigators will consent and administer one additional rating scale (Burke-Fahn-Marsden Dystonia Rating Scale) to assess the severity of dystonia.

The aim of the study is to constitute a proof of concept study for a larger study investigating the effect of mindfulness on anxiety and agitation in Parkinson's disease (PD) based on the results of a preliminary feasibility.

Parkinson's disease (PD) is the second most frequently appearing neurodegenerative disease. It is a progressive disease of the central nervous system (CNS) and affects around 1% of people over 60 years old. During the progression decline of substantia nigra and deficits of dopamine are observed. The diagnosis is usually based on the motor symptoms such as resting tremor, bradykinesia, muscle stiffness, and postural instability. Common intercurrent symptoms are psychiatric problems like depression or dementia (1). Pharmacotherapy, for example, L-dopa or deep brain stimulation (DBS) are usually used to reduce the motor symptoms (2). From many years the influence of insufficient vitamin D3 levels in human is investigated. In recent publications it was proved that the deficiency of vitamin D3 may lead to generation of reactive oxygen species that influence negatively on mitochondria. That may lead to increased muscle atrophy (3,4). Deficiency of vitamin D3 may be also connected with depression, dementia or the progression of neurodegenerative diseases (5). Moreover, recently studies proved that PD patients have low concentration of serum vitamin D3 (5), increased serum homocysteine (6) and abnormalities in kynurenine pathway (7). It has beed proved that many forms of physical activity in PD patients improves mobility, static and dynamic balance but also may reduce the non-motor symptoms (8,9).

Treatment of sleep disturbances is mainly attempted through drug administration. However, certain drugs are associated with unwanted side effects or residual effects upon awakening (e.g. sleepiness, ataxia) which can increase the risks of falls and fractures. In addition, there can be systemic consequences of long-term use. An alternative method of manipulating sleep is by stimulating the brain to influence the electroencephalogram (EEG). To date, there have been mixed results from stimulating superficial areas of the brain and, as far as we know, there has been no systematic attempt to influence deep brain activity. Many patients suffering from movement disorders, such as Parkinson's Disease (PD) and Multiple Systems Atrophy (MSA), also have disrupted sleep. Currently, at stages where drug treatment no longer offers adequate control of their motor symptoms, these patients are implanted with a deep brain stimulation system. This involves depth electrodes which deliver constant pulse stimulation to the targeted area. A similar system is used in patients with severe epilepsy, as well as some patients with chronic pain. The aim of this feasibility study is to investigate whether we can improve sleep quality in patients with deep brain stimulators by delivering targeted stimulation patterns during specific stages of sleep. We will only use stimulation frequencies that have been proven to be safe for patients and frequently used for clinical treatment of their disorder. We will examine the structure and quality of sleep as well as how alert patients are when they wake up, while also monitoring physiological markers such as heart rate and blood pressure. Upon awakening, we will ask the patients to provide their subjective opinion of their sleep and complete some simple tests to see how alert they are compared to baseline condition which would be either stimulation at the standard clinical setting or no stimulation. We hope that our study will open new ways of optimising sleep without the use of drugs, in patients who are implanted with depth electrodes. We also believe that our findings will broaden the understanding of how the activity of deep brain areas influences sleep and alertness.

Pain is one of the non-motor symptoms of Parkinson's disease still poorly known and misdiagnosed and its management is complex. This encourage to explore new non-drug therapeutic paths, such as foot reflexology (FR). the present study proposed a comparison of the evolution of different parameters, quantitative and qualitative, to identify biomarkers and highlight the specific effect of FR on pain, compared to sham massage.

Mild cognitive impairment is experienced by approximately 30% of patients with Parkinson's disease (PD-MCI), often affecting executive functions. There is currently no pharmacological treatment available for PD-MCI and non-pharmacological treatments are still scarce. The aim of this study was to test preliminary efficacy/effectiveness of two home-based cognitive interventions adapted for patients with PD-MCI: Goal Management Training, adapted for PD-MCI (Adapted-GMT), and a psychoeducation program combined with mindfulness exercises. Twelve persons with PD-MCI with executive dysfunctions, as measured by extensive neuropsychological evaluation, were randomly assigned to one of two intervention groups. Both groups received five sessions each lasting 60-90 minutes for five weeks, in presence of the caregiver. Measures were collected at baseline, mid-point, at one-week, four-week and 12-week follow-ups. Primary outcomes were executive functions assessed by subjective (DEX questionnaire patient- and caregiver-rated) and objective (Zoo Map Test) measures. Secondary outcomes included quality of life (PDQ-39), global cognition (DRS-II), and neuropsychiatric symptoms (NPI-12). Safety data (fatigue, medication change and compliance) were also recorded. Repeated measures ANCOVAs were applied to outcomes. Both groups significantly ameliorated executive functions overtime as indicated by improvements in DEX-patient and DEX-caregiver scores. PDQ-39 scores decreased at the four-week follow-up in the Psychoeducation/Mindfulness group whereas they were maintained in the Adapted-GMT group. All other measures were maintained over time in both groups. Adapted-GMT and Psychoeducation/Mindfulness groups both improved executive functioning. This is one of the first studies to test home-based approaches, tailored to the participant's cognitive needs, and involving caregivers.

The purpose of the study is to evaluate the safety and tolerability after administration of multiple doses and the pharmacokinetics (PK) of single and multiple doses of UCB0599 in healthy study participants and participants with Parkinson's Disease (PD).

Non-pharmacological therapies become more important in the management of Parkinson's disease (PD). Among these, mindfulness meditation is the subject of high expectations. This intervention, such as the Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction-based (MBSR) stress reduction program, have shown effects on psychological distress, motor and non-motor disorders, and quality of life. However, the data is still very frail and the conditions for practical use are still very uncertain. The objective of the study is to determine the feasibility of a standardized MBSR program in Parkinsonians patients.

The study is an open-label trial to validate the local field potential (LFP) activity in the subthalamic nucleus (STN) for slow-wave detection during acoustic stimulation during nighttime sleep in Parkinson's disease patients that receive deep-brain-stimulation (DBS) therapy with the novel PERCEPT™ DBS system.