Effect of Robot-assisted Gait Training on Freezing of Gait in Parkinson's Disease

September 18, 2013 updated by: US Department of Veterans Affairs

Freezing of gait (FOG) is a common yet poorly understood motor symptom in persons with Parkinson's disease (PD). Previous studies have shown that bilateral uncoordinated gait and gait asymmetry are related to FOG, and that intensive treadmill training in PD patients can improve gait. However, no group has yet studied the effect of robot-assisted gait training (RAGT) on FOG. The primary aim of this study is to collect pilot data on the effect of robot-assisted gait training in reducing episodes of freezing in PD.

Subjects with Parkinson's disease that experience freezing of gait will be recruited and enrolled following informed consent and screening for eligibility. Each of the 10 training session will last approximately one hour. Neurological evaluations, testing of gait parameters, and quality of life assessments will be conducted. Participants will also be asked to return for 1- and 3-month post-intervention assessments to see if the training has any lasting effects. Approximately 10-20 subjects will be enrolled, and the study will last up to 6 months.

Robot-assisted gait training will be conducted with the Lokomat (a treadmill with supplemental robot-assistance for moving the hip and knee). We will monitor changes in freezing by conducting various assessments.

There are approximately 1 million Americans with PD in the US. PD is a significant cause for reduced functional ability and quality of life, progressive disability. Patients with PD with FOG have indicated that this is one of their most disturbing symptoms, as there are no effective treatments. Therefore it is important that additional and alternative interventions for FOG be tested and developed.

Study Overview

Status

Completed

Conditions

Intervention / Treatment

Study Type

Interventional

Enrollment (Anticipated)

20

Phase

  • Phase 2
  • Phase 1

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Locations

  • United States
    • Rhode Island
      • Providence, Rhode Island, United States, 02908-4799
        • Providence VA Medical Center

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Ages Eligible for Study

18 years to 85 years (Adult, Older Adult)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Genders Eligible for Study

All

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Diagnosis of idiopathic PD by UK Brain Bank criteria, without other significant neurological problems.
  • Men and women between the ages of 18-85 years.
  • History of FOG by self-report and verified by MD.
  • Must be able to walk unassisted when not freezing but use of a device to prevent falls and overcome freezing is not exclusionary. (Device should not be used for visual cueing).

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Cognitively unable to understand instructions required by the study.
  • Presence of medical or neurological infirmity that might contribute to significant gait dysfunction (such as severe OA, foot drop, sensory neuropathy, blindness, joint replacement, etc.), determined by the physician during the screening exam.
  • Cardiovascular: recent MI < 4 wk, uncontrolled HTN >190/110 mmHg.
  • History of uncontrolled diabetes.
  • Significant symptoms of orthostasis when standing up.
  • Circulatory problems, history of vascular claudication or 3+ pitting edema.
  • Body weight over 100 kg.
  • Lower extremity injuries that limit range of motion or function.
  • Joint problems (hip or leg) that limit range of motion or cause pain with movement despite treatment.
  • Unstable fractures.
  • Pressure sores with any skin breakdown in areas in contact with the body harness or Lokomat apparatus.
  • Chronic and ongoing alcohol or drug abuse.
  • Active depression, anxiety or psychosis that might interfere with use of the equipment or testing.
  • Inability to participate in and complete the training sessions.
  • Patients determined to have an atypical parkinsonian syndrome by a neurologist.
  • Patients with PD that have undergone deep brain stimulation.
  • Primarily wheelchair bound.

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Basic Science
  • Allocation: N/A
  • Interventional Model: Single Group Assignment
  • Masking: Single

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm
Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: Arm 1
Potential eligible subjects for the trial will be individuals between ages 18-85, with a confirmed diagnosis of PD that experience freezing.
Device: Lokomat
The Lokomat is a motor driven exoskeleton device that employs a body weight support suspension system and treadmill. Attached to the lower limbs, the Lokomat moves the subject's legs through position controlled trajectories that mimic normal human gait patterns. This is accomplished by utilizing high quality computer-controlled motors that are precisely synchronized with the speed of the treadmill. The hip and knee joint angles are controlled in real time by software to achieve kinematically correct stepping behaviors. Each of the four motor-driven joints is individually controlled to correspond precisely to the desired joint angle trajectories. This system assures a precise match between the speed of the limb trajectory and the treadmill. In addition, sensors in the motors provide an indirect indicator of the amount of effort the patient is generating to achieve walking in an upright posture.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Freezing of Gait
Time Frame: Each Visit
Temporary halting of gait
Each Visit

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

US Department of Veterans Affairs

Publications and helpful links

The person responsible for entering information about the study voluntarily provides these publications. These may be about anything related to the study.

General Publications

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start

October 1, 2008

Primary Completion (Actual)

October 1, 2010

Study Completion (Actual)

October 1, 2010

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

January 7, 2009

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

January 8, 2009

First Posted (Estimate)

January 9, 2009

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Estimate)

September 20, 2013

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

September 18, 2013

Last Verified

September 1, 2013

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

  • B4125-K

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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