Parkinson's Disease Clinical Trials in Boston, MA

The goal of this clinical trial is to learn whether home-based transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) is safe and practical for people aged 40 to 70 years with Parkinson's Disease. The study aims to find out if participants can use the tDCS device at home without serious side effects and whether it is easy for them to use on their own. Participants will first attend an in-person visit to learn how to use the tDCS device. They will then use the device at home once a day for 20 minutes over seven consecutive days. Video calls on days 2 and 3 will provide support and supervision. After each session, participants will complete brief online questionnaires about any side effects and how easy the device was to use. The study will also check if using tDCS at home improves motor symptoms in Parkinson's Disease by using a standard movement assessment. Read Less

The first purpose of the study is to develop and test new methods for quantifying dance among adults with a diagnosis of Parkinson's using various kinds of cameras, wearable activity monitors, and questionnaires. The second reason we are conducting the study is to better understand the relationship between the intensity of dance classes specifically designed for adults with Parkinson's and individual-level factors like the kinds of routine activities one does beyond dancing and one's health status. Participants in the study may be asked to engage in any of the following activities: * complete a small number of assessments on their physical and cognitive functioning * complete their routine group-based dance classes, specifically designed for adults with a diagnosis of Parkinson's, while being recorded Depending upon the group that a participant joins, one may also be asked to: * wear an activity monitor on their waist while engaged in their daily business as usual for nine (9) days * complete an iDXA scan * describe their perceptions on how the use of technology can integrated into their dancing Read Less

Pain is a very common and disabling symptom in Parkinson's disease, yet it is often untreated. This study will assess the impact of home-based physical and cognitive exercise interventions to reduce pain in this disease. This approach would offer an easily implemented and affordable way to encourage and maintain use of these interventions by patients virtually indefinitely through remote access technology. The study findings may help VA clinicians provide optimal care for the many Veterans with Parkinson's disease and chronic pain. Read Less

This research involves retrospective and prospective studies for clinical validation of a DystoniaNet deep learning platform for the diagnosis of isolated dystonia. Read Less

This study is a Phase 3 multi-site, randomized, evaluator-masked, study of endurance treadmill exercise on changes in the Movement Disorder Society-Unified Parkinson Disease Rating Scale (MDS-UPDRS) Part III score at 12 months among persons with early stage Parkinson disease. 370 participants will be randomly assigned to 2 groups: 1)60-65% HRmax or 2)80-85% HRmax 4 times per week. The primary objective is to test whether the progression of the signs of Parkinson's disease is attenuated at 12 months in among persons who have not initiated medication for Parkinson Disease (PD) when they perform high-intensity endurance treadmill exercise. Read Less

This study will enroll participants with idiopathic REM sleep behavior disorder (RBD) and healthy controls for the purpose of preparing for a clinical trial of neuroprotective treatments against synucleinopathies. Read Less

This study is an observational, prospective genetic study. It aims to obtain DNA for research and testing from patients with PSP, CBS, MSA, and related neurological conditions and their families. Up to 1,000 adults who have been clinically diagnosed with PSP, CBS, MSA, or related neurological conditions will be enrolled. The study intervention involves sequencing of participant blood samples using non-CLIA-approved whole genome sequencing at the National Institutes of Health. Pathogenic variants that are deemed possibly related to these conditions will be confirmed using CLIA-approved testing. The study involves minimal risk to participants. Read Less

Freezing-of-gait (FoG) in Parkinson Disease (PD) is one of the most vivid and disturbing gait phenomena in neurology. Often described by patients as a feeling of "feet getting glued to the floor," FoG is formally defined as a "brief, episodic absence or marked reduction of forward progression of the feet despite the intention to walk." This debilitating gait phenomena is very common in PD, occurring in up to 80% of individuals with severe PD. When FoG arrests walking, serious consequences can occur such as loss of balance, falls, injurious events, consequent fear of falling, and increased hospitalization. Wearable robots are capable of augmenting spatiotemporal gait mechanics and are emerging as viable solutions for locomotor assistance in various neurological populations. For the proposed study, our goal is to understand how low force mechanical assistance from soft robotic apparel can best mitigate gait decline preceding a freezing episode and subsequent onset of FoG by improving spatial (e.g. stride length) and temporal features (e.g. stride time variability) of walking. We hypothesize that the ongoing gait-preserving effects can essentially minimize the accumulation of motor errors that lead to FoG. Importantly, the autonomous assistance provided by the wearable robot circumvents the need for cognitive or attentional resources, thereby minimizing risks for overloading the cognitive systems -- a known trigger for FoG, thus enhancing the repeatability and robustness of FoG-preventing effects. Read Less

The investigators plan to examine the relation of perceptual variables-basic vision, unusual perceptual experiences(including but not limited to visual hallucinations)-to relevant functional variables such as cognition, mood, and alertness/sleepiness in an online sample of persons with Parkinson's disease (PwPD). It is hypothesized that unusual perceptual experiences will relate significantly to the selected variables. Participants do not need to experience visual hallucinations to be able to participate in this study. This is an observational study only, and not an interventional study. Read Less

This online study aims to explore the benefits of nature for mood and cognition in persons with and without Parkinson's disease. For the purpose of this survey, "natural environment" refers to places that primarily consist of natural elements, such as vegetation, water bodies, and landscapes. This includes greenspaces (such as parks, gardens, neighborhood streets lined with trees, forests, or nature reserves) bluespaces (such as next to beaches, lakes, rivers, ponds, or waterfronts), and desert regions, among others. Read Less

In this research study the researchers want to learn more about brain activity related to speech perception and production. Read Less

The purpose of this international study is to evaluate long-term safety and effectiveness of Abbott deep brain stimulation (DBS) systems for all indications, including Parkinson's disease, essential tremor or other disabling tremor and dystonia. Read Less