Prospective Multicenter Registry Study of Multiple System Atrophy in China (MSA Registry S)

June 8, 2026 updated by: Peking University First Hospital

Clinical Features and Natural History of Multiple System Atrophy: A Prospective Multicenter Registry Study in China

Multiple system atrophy is a rare, rapidly progressive neurodegenerative disease characterized by variable combinations of parkinsonism, cerebellar ataxia, and autonomic dysfunction. Existing natural history studies from North America, Europe, and Japan suggest that clinical phenotypes and disease progression may differ across populations. However, comprehensive multicenter prospective data from Chinese patients with multiple system atrophy remain limited.

This prospective multicenter registry study aims to describe the clinical characteristics, longitudinal progression, and outcomes of Chinese patients with multiple system atrophy, to identify factors associated with disease progression and prognosis, and to establish a longitudinal cohort for future biomarker validation and clinical trial design.

Study Overview

Status

Recruiting

Conditions

Detailed Description

Multiple system atrophy is an adult-onset, progressive neurodegenerative disorder characterized by parkinsonism, cerebellar ataxia, autonomic dysfunction, and variable non-motor manifestations. The disease is pathologically associated with alpha-synuclein accumulation and neuronal and glial degeneration in multiple brain regions. Due to its rarity, clinical heterogeneity, rapid progression, and poor prognosis, large-scale prospective studies are needed to better define its natural history and to support future therapeutic development.

This study is a prospective, observational, multicenter registry study conducted in China. Eligible participants will include patients with clinically established or clinically probable multiple system atrophy according to the 2022 Movement Disorder Society diagnostic criteria. Parkinson disease patients and healthy or non-neurodegenerative controls may also be enrolled for comparative analyses.

Data will be collected through in-person visits, medical record review, standardized clinical scales, neurological examinations, autonomic function testing, neuroimaging, laboratory tests, and biospecimen collection. Longitudinal follow-up will be performed at prespecified time points, including alternating in-person and telephone-based assessments when applicable. Clinical scales may include the Unified Multiple System Atrophy Rating Scale, Movement Disorder Society-sponsored Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale, non-motor symptom scales, autonomic symptom scales, and disability measures. Neuroimaging, autonomic function tests, electrophysiological or oculomotor evaluations, and biospecimen-based analyses may be performed according to the study protocol and local clinical practice.

The main objectives are to characterize the clinical features and longitudinal disease course of Chinese patients with multiple system atrophy, compare clinical characteristics between MSA-P and MSA-C subtypes, identify clinical and paraclinical factors associated with disease progression and prognosis, and establish a longitudinal platform for subsequent biomarker validation and clinical trial design.

Study Type

Observational

Enrollment (Estimated)

214

Contacts and Locations

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

Study Contact

Study Locations

  • China
    • Beijing Municipality
      • Beijing, Beijing Municipality, China, 100034
        • Recruiting
        • Peking University First Hospital
        • Contact:

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

  • Adult
  • Older Adult

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Sampling Method

Non-Probability Sample

Study Population

Patients with MSA or PD who visited the outpatient department or wards of tertiary hospitals. Those who voluntarily participated, along with the family members of healthy individuals without neurodegenerative diseases, served as healthy controls.

Description

Inclusion Criteria

  1. Patients with clinically established or clinically probable multiple system atrophy according to the 2022 Movement Disorder Society diagnostic criteria; or
  2. Patients with clinically established or clinically probable Parkinson disease according to the Movement Disorder Society diagnostic criteria; or
  3. Healthy controls or controls without hereditary or neurodegenerative diseases who voluntarily agree to participate.
  4. Age between 40 and 75 years.
  5. Ability to provide informed consent or availability of a legally authorized representative when applicable.

Exclusion Criteria

  1. Parkinsonism that cannot be classified as Parkinson disease or multiple system atrophy at the time of evaluation.
  2. Clinical suspicion or diagnosis of other atypical parkinsonian syndromes, including progressive supranuclear palsy, dementia with Lewy bodies, or corticobasal syndrome.
  3. Secondary parkinsonism due to intracranial space-occupying lesions, normal pressure hydrocephalus, drug-induced parkinsonism, or other identifiable causes.
  4. Comorbid diseases that may substantially affect autonomic function, such as diabetic peripheral neuropathy or amyloidosis.
  5. Refusal to participate in the study or refusal to undergo routine clinical evaluations for parkinsonian syndromes.
  6. Psychiatric or behavioral abnormalities that preclude reliable clinical data collection or scale-based assessment.

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

Cohorts and Interventions

Group / Cohort
MSA
PD
HC
Healthy control / Control without neurodegenerative diseases

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Change in disease severity
Time Frame: Baseline to up to 36 months after enrollment.
Change in disease severity as measured by the Unified Multiple System Atrophy Rating Scale over longitudinal follow-up.
Baseline to up to 36 months after enrollment.

Collaborators and Investigators

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

Sponsor

Peking University First Hospital

Investigators

  • Principal Investigator: Zhaoxia Wang, MD, Department of Neurology, Peking University First Hospital

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 (Actual)

June 1, 2025

Primary Completion (Estimated)

December 31, 2029

Study Completion (Estimated)

June 30, 2030

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

June 8, 2026

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

June 8, 2026

First Posted (Actual)

June 12, 2026

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

June 12, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

June 8, 2026

Last Verified

May 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

  • MSARegistryStudy-20250302

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

UNDECIDED

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

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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