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Does Hippotherapy Have an Effect on Mobility, Gait, Balance and Perceived Health-related Quality of Life in Persons With Parkinson's Disease? (HIHA)

14 september 2026 bijgewerkt door: Jens Bansi, Klinik Valens

The goal of this pilot randomized controlled trial is to investigate the effects of hippotherapy (horse assisted therapy) (intervention group) compared to usual care (control group) on mobility, gait, balance and perceived health-related quality of life in persons with Parkinson's disease. The main objectives of this study are:

  • The primary objective is to investigate the effects of hippotherapy on mobility of pwPD, walking speed and the ability to perform daily movements.
  • The secondary objective is to investigate the effects of hippotherapy on (a) balance, (b) self-perceived physical and mental health and (c) specific gait parameters.
  • Furthermore this study, aims to gather critical information that will inform about the design and implementation of a larger, more definitive randomized controlled trial.

In addition to the three-week, multidisciplinary rehabilitation program the intervention group will receive hippotherapy (20 minutes) three times a week (7 sessions in total) and the control group will receive additional physiotherapy sessions (30 minutes) two times a week.

Studie Overzicht

Toestand

Werving

Conditie

Interventie / Behandeling

Studietype

Ingrijpend

Inschrijving (Geschat)

30

Fase

  • Niet toepasbaar

Contacten en locaties

In dit gedeelte vindt u de contactgegevens van degenen die het onderzoek uitvoeren en informatie over waar dit onderzoek wordt uitgevoerd.

Studiecontact

Studie Contact Back-up

Studie Locaties

  • Zwitserland
    • Canton of St. Gallen
      • Valens, Canton of St. Gallen, Zwitserland, 7317
        • Werving
        • Rehabilitation Centre Valens
        • Hoofdonderzoeker:
          • Jens Bansi, PhD
        • Contact:

Deelname Criteria

Onderzoekers zoeken naar mensen die aan een bepaalde beschrijving voldoen, de zogenaamde geschiktheidscriteria. Enkele voorbeelden van deze criteria zijn iemands algemene gezondheidstoestand of eerdere behandelingen.

Geschiktheidscriteria

Leeftijden die in aanmerking komen voor studie

  • Volwassen
  • Oudere volwassene

Accepteert gezonde vrijwilligers

Nee

Beschrijving

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Confirmed diagnosis of Parkinson's diagnosis
  • Age > 18 Years;
  • Hoehn & Yahr stage ≤ 4;
  • Category 3 in the Functional Ambulation Categories
  • Climbing stairs is possible (with support).

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Severe cognitive impairment, defined by a score below 26 on the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCa)
  • Body weight > 90kg;
  • Horse hair allergy;
  • Other acute and subacute cardiovascular, respiratory, musculoskeletal or neurological disorders that constitute a contraindication to hippotherapy (i.e. a recent fracture);
  • Pregnancy.

Studie plan

Dit gedeelte bevat details van het studieplan, inclusief hoe de studie is opgezet en wat de studie meet.

Hoe is de studie opgezet?

Ontwerpdetails

  • Primair doel: Behandeling
  • Toewijzing: Gerandomiseerd
  • Interventioneel model: Parallelle opdracht
  • Masker: Dubbele

Wapens en interventies

Deelnemersgroep / Arm
Interventie / Behandeling
Experimenteel: Hippotherapy
In addition to the three-week, multidisciplinary rehabilitation program the intervention group will receive hippotherapy three times a week (7 sessions in total). The hippotherapy sessions last 20 minutes each and aim at trunk rotation (in the transverse and frontal plane), rhythm and trunk stability. They will receive this in addition to the usual three-week rehabilitation program. This program includes 30 minutes of physical therapy daily plus two additional physiotherapy sessions of 30 minutes, 30 minutes of occupational therapy 3x/week, strength training 3x/week, 45 minutes of balance training 2x/week and, as required, other therapies such as nutritional advice, speech therapy and/or creative therapy to meet the individual needs of people with Parkinson's.
Ander: Hippotherapy
Hippotherapy is a form of physical therapy that utilizes the natural gait and movement of a horse to provide motor and sensory input. The hippotherapy sessions last 20 minutes each and aim at trunk rotation (in the transverse and frontal plane), rhythm and trunk stability.
Andere namen:
  • Equine assisted therapy
Actieve vergelijker: Usual care
The comparison group will perform the three-week rehabilitation program, without hippotherapy. This program includes 30 minutes of physical therapy daily plus two additional physiotherapy sessions of 30 minutes, 30 minutes of occupational therapy 3x/week, strength training 3x/week, 45 minutes of balance training 2x/week and, as required, other therapies such as nutritional advice, speech therapy and/or creative therapy to meet the individual needs of people with Parkinson's.
Ander: Physiotherapy
Physiotherapy sessions take 30 minutes and focus on core stability and exercises with large motor tasks
Andere namen:
  • Oefentherapie
  • Fysiotherapie

Wat meet het onderzoek?

Primaire uitkomstmaten

Uitkomstmaat
Maatregel Beschrijving
Tijdsspanne
Functional mobility.
Tijdsspanne: From enrollment to the end of treatment at 3 weeks

Functional mobility will be measured with the expanded Timed Up and Go test.

The eTUG is a modification of the traditional Timed Up and Go test, whereby the distance is increased from 6 to 10m. This has enabled a more accurate gait assessment in pwPD. Multiple time points are assessed:

  • The time the person takes to get from a sitting to standing position.
  • The time the person takes to walk the first two meters (gait initiation)
  • The time the person takes to walk the remaining (gait 1)
  • The time the person takes to turn (turning)
  • The time the person takes to (gait 2)
  • The time the person takes to slow down, turn and sit down again

The more time someone takes to perform the test, the more the mobility is impaired.
From enrollment to the end of treatment at 3 weeks

Secundaire uitkomstmaten

Uitkomstmaat
Maatregel Beschrijving
Tijdsspanne
Balance
Tijdsspanne: From enrollment to the end of treatment at 3 weeks
Balance will be assessed with the Mini Balance Evaluation Systems Test (Mini-BESTest). The Mini-BESTest is shorter, more clinically applicable version of the original Balance Evaluation Systems Test (BESTest). This test focuses on subcomponents of balance control, such as anticipatory postural adjustments, postural responses, sensory orientation, and dynamic gait. It has proven to be effective in detecting balance impairments in persons with Parkinsons disease. The scale ranges from 0-28 points, with higher scores indicating better balance capacity.
From enrollment to the end of treatment at 3 weeks
Health related quality of life
Tijdsspanne: From enrollment to the end of treatment at 3 weeks
Health related quality of life will be assessed with the Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System Global Health Short Form v1.2 (PROMIS-GH-10). The PROMIS-GH-10 is a ten-item questionnaire that assesses generic health related quality of life compared with normal values for the general population. It measures five domains: physical function, fatigue, pain, emotional distress, and social health on a five-point response matrix. Both physical and mental scores range from 0-20, with higher scores indicating a better perceived health related quality of life.
From enrollment to the end of treatment at 3 weeks
Walking capacity
Tijdsspanne: From enrollment to the end of treatment at 3 weeks
Walking capacity will be tested using the 6 minutes walking test (6-MWT). With the 6-MWT, the total distance in meters covered within six minutes is assessed. The 6-MWT is performed on a 20-meter hallway, on which participants are asked to walk back and forth at maximal speed for the duration of six minutes without permission of rest. The instruction is standardized as "to walk at the fastest speed, and to cover as much distance as possible". Participants are allowed to use a walking aid, if necessary to ensure safe ambulation. The use of walking aids will be documented in the CRF, and participants are asked to use the same walking aid during the re-test at T1. During the tests, the research assistant blinded to group allocation is instructed, to not encourage the participant. The greater the distance walked during the test, the greater the walking endurance.
From enrollment to the end of treatment at 3 weeks

Andere uitkomstmaten

Uitkomstmaat
Maatregel Beschrijving
Tijdsspanne
Adherence
Tijdsspanne: From enrollment to the end of treatment at 3 weeks
Adherence rates will be obtained to help design and implement a larger scaled randomized controlled trial. The therapist that is performing the hippotherapy or additional physiotherapy sessions with the participant will document the training in the CRF. This includes reasons for not coming to the session (i.e. no motivation, falling sick, etc), reasons for early termination of the training session (i.e. fear, difficulty climbing on the horse) and a free space to write any other relevant information.
From enrollment to the end of treatment at 3 weeks
Recruitment rates
Tijdsspanne: through study completion, approximately 2 years.
Recruitment rates will be obtained to gather information that will help to design and implement a larger scaled randomized controlled trial. The research assistant that is responsible for recruitment will keep a list that keeps track of the date of recruitment / exclusion and reason of exclusion (i.e. does not want to participate, does not meet the inclusion criteria).
through study completion, approximately 2 years.
Adverse effects.
Tijdsspanne: From enrollment to the end of treatment at 3 weeks

Adverse effects concern the documentation of:

  • reasons for study withdrawal (drop-out),
  • reasons for incomplete session attendance (< 7 session)
  • reasons for session abortion
  • reasons for deviations from exercise prescription
  • sudden severe disease progression or falling sick (e.g., bacterial or viral infections) during the study (discontinuation criterion)
From enrollment to the end of treatment at 3 weeks

Medewerkers en onderzoekers

Hier vindt u mensen en organisaties die betrokken zijn bij dit onderzoek.

Sponsor

Klinik Valens

Medewerkers

Schweizer Gruppe für Hippotherapie-K

Studie record data

Deze datums volgen de voortgang van het onderzoeksdossier en de samenvatting van de ingediende resultaten bij ClinicalTrials.gov. Studieverslagen en gerapporteerde resultaten worden beoordeeld door de National Library of Medicine (NLM) om er zeker van te zijn dat ze voldoen aan specifieke kwaliteitscontrolenormen voordat ze op de openbare website worden geplaatst.

Bestudeer belangrijke data

Studie start (Werkelijk)

1 januari 2025

Primaire voltooiing (Geschat)

1 januari 2027

Studie voltooiing (Geschat)

1 januari 2027

Studieregistratiedata

Eerst ingediend

31 augustus 2026

Eerst ingediend dat voldeed aan de QC-criteria

31 augustus 2026

Eerst geplaatst (Werkelijk)

3 september 2026

Updates van studierecords

Laatste update geplaatst (Werkelijk)

17 september 2026

Laatste update ingediend die voldeed aan QC-criteria

14 september 2026

Laatst geverifieerd

1 augustus 2026

Meer informatie

Termen gerelateerd aan deze studie

Trefwoorden

Aanvullende relevante MeSH-voorwaarden

Andere studie-ID-nummers

  • Hippo-HIHA

Plan Individuele Deelnemersgegevens (IPD)

Bent u van plan om gegevens van individuele deelnemers (IPD) te delen?

ONBESLIST

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Bestudeert een door de Amerikaanse FDA gereguleerd geneesmiddel

Nee

Bestudeert een door de Amerikaanse FDA gereguleerd apparaatproduct

Nee

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