Dementia Clinical Trials in Durham, NC

Since its launch in 2004, the overarching aim of the Alzheimer's Disease Neuroimaging Initiative (ADNI) Study has been to validate biomarkers for Alzheimer's disease (AD) clinical trials. ADNI4 continues the previously funded ADNI1, ADNI-GO, ADNI2, and ADNI3 studies that have combined public/private collaborations between academia and industry to determine the relationships between the clinical, cognitive, imaging, genetic and biochemical biomarker characteristics of the entire spectrum of AD. Read Less

In this study, researchers will learn more about a study drug called BIIB080. The study will focus on participants with mild cognitive impairment or mild dementia due to AD. The main question researchers are trying to answer is if BIIB080 can slow the worsening of AD more than placebo. It will focus on what dose of BIIB080 slows worsening of AD the most. To help answer this question, researchers will use the Clinical Dementia Rating-Sum of Boxes, also known as the CDR-SB. Clinicians use the CDR-SB to measure several categories of dementia symptoms. The results for each category are added together for a total score. Lower scores are better. Researchers will also learn more about the safety of BIIB080. The study will be split into 2 parts. The 1st part is the Placebo-Controlled Period. The 2nd part is the Long-Term Extension Period. The 2nd part of the study will help researchers learn about the long-term safety of BIIB080, and how it affects the participant's daily life, thinking, and memory abilities in the longer term. A description of how the study will be done is given below. After screening, participants will first receive either a low dose or high dose of BIIB080, or a placebo, as an injection into the fluid around the spinal cord (cerebrospinal fluid). A placebo looks like the study drug but contains no real medicine. Participants will receive BIIB080 or placebo once every 12 weeks or 24 weeks. After 76 weeks of treatment in the Placebo-Controlled Period, eligible participants will move onto the Extension Treatment period, which will last 96 weeks. In the extension period, participants who received placebo will be switched to high dose BIIB080 every 12 or 24 weeks. Participants may be in the study for up to 201 weeks, or about 4 years. This includes the screening and follow-up periods. Participants can continue to take certain medications for AD. Participants must be on the same dose of medication for at least 8 weeks before the screening period. After the screening period, most participants will visit the clinic every 6 weeks. Read Less

The purpose of this study is to develop a prototype of a home-based, dyadic tangible toolkit comprised of simple tools to help people living with dementia (PLWD) and their care partners manage stress at home. A human-centered design approach will be used to develop and user-test a prototype of a dyadic, tangible stress-management toolkit with and for PLWD and their care partners; and to explore the feasibility of collecting several stress-related outcomes. A total of 4 focus groups (n=3-4 dyads/group) will be convened to explore the experiences, perceptions, preferences, and recommendations of dementia-caring dyads regarding stress, stress management, and key components and features of a stress management toolkit. Eligible tools for the toolkit include low burden, high safety tools such as weighted blankets, robotic pets and baby dolls, guided journals, aromatherapy and bright light therapy devices, and massage and acupressure tools. Ten dyads who were not involved in prototype development will then use the toolkit for 2 weeks. Feedback on usability, feasibility, and acceptability will be collected through questionnaires (end of weeks 1 and 2) and 3 focus groups (3-4 dyads/group at end of week 2). We will collect stress-related, participant-reported outcomes (e.g., neuropsychiatric symptoms of dementia, caregiver stress, dyadic relationship strain), and saliva biospecimens from participants with dementia and their care partners at baseline and end of week 2, to explore their utility as endpoints in a future toolkit intervention that uses a single-arm, pre-post study design. Results will yield valuable data to support development and preliminary testing of a stress management toolkit intervention in a future pilot study. This study involves human subjects and is expected to yield no more than minimal risk. Tools eligible for the toolkit must have demonstrated high degrees of safety in prior research. Major risks for participation include the potential for negative emotional responses to focus group discussions and surveys pertaining to stress, excess time burden to participate in the study, and breach of confidentiality. It is not anticipated, but there is a potential for physical discomfort if tools are not used as directed, which is why the toolkits will include a user guide outlining safety information, which a research team member will review with each participant prior to use. Read Less

Ruptured cerebral aneurysms lead to subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH),that has a high morbidity and mortality rate, the severity of which is predicted by the "Hunt-Hess grade" (HHG). SAH leads to iron (Fe) and hemoglobin (Hb) accumulation in the brain, which is toxic for neurons. Ferritin (iron reported in the brian) and iron overload leads to brain atrophy, specifically in the mesial temporal lobe (hippocampus, impairing patients' cognition. It is estimated that 50% of survivors have cognitive deficits. Most of the survivors of SAH could not return to work. Iron chelation therapy has been recently gaining ground as a therapeutic intervention in intraparenchymal hemorrhage and in SAH. However, there has not been any study that assess the iron deposition in the brain and the level of ferritin in the cerebrospinal fluid of SAH patients. The investigators propose to conduct a randomized trial using Deferiprone (oral chelating agent, "De") + standard of care versus standard of care in patient with SAH to: assess the level of ferritin (Ft) in CSF (CSF withdrawn from ventriculostomy tube), assess functional outcomes measured by the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) score, a score used to assess the level of dementia, mainly in Alzheimer disease patients. quantify the the total iron deposition in the brain based on MRI Read Less

PREVENTABLE is a multi-center, randomized, parallel group, placebo-controlled superiority study. Participants will be randomized 1:1 to atorvastatin 40 mg or placebo. This large study conducted in community-dwelling older adults without cardiovascular disease (CVD) or dementia will demonstrate the benefit of statins for reducing the primary composite of death, dementia, and persistent disability and secondary composites including mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and cardiovascular events. Read Less

The goal of this observational study is to learn about the role of family members in caring for hospitalized older adults with cognitive impairment. The main questions it aims to answer are: What features of the healthcare system facilitate or hinder family involvement in care from the perspective of patients, families, and healthcare workers? How do hospital leaders understand the facilitators and barriers to family involvement? Data collection will occur via semi-structure interviews, direct observation, and artifact analysis. Read Less

This is an extension study of the Phase 3 Studies 15-AVP-786-301, 15-AVP-786-302, and 17-AVP-786-305, which also allows participants from the Phase 2 Study 12-AVR-131 to be included. Read Less

The purpose of the Clinical Procedures To Support Research (CAPTURE) study is to utilize information collected in the medical record to learn more about a disease called amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and related disorders. Read Less

This study aims to develop and evaluate biomarkers using non-invasive optical coherence tomography (OCT) and OCT angiography (OCTA) as well as ultra-widefield (UWF) fundus photography to assess the structure and function of the retinal and choroidal microvasculature and structure in persons with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and Alzheimer's Disease (AD), Parkinson's Disease (PD), or other neurodegenerative disease, diseases as outlined. Read Less

This home-based study is a randomized (1:1) placebo-controlled trial of a single infusion of zoledronic acid-5 mg (ZA) for the prevention of fractures in men and women aged 60 years and older with Parkinson's disease and parkinsonism with at least 2 years of follow-up. A total of 3500 participants will be enrolled and randomized in the United States. Participants, follow-up outcome assessors, and study investigators will be blinded to assigned study treatment. This trial is funded by the National Institute of Aging. Read Less

Dementia is the most expensive medical condition in the US and increases in prevalence with age. More than 5 million Americans have Alzheimer's disease, the most common form of dementia. Mild cognitive impairment is a transitional stage between normal cognitive aging and Alzheimer's disease or another type of dementia, and is indicative of higher risk for dementia. In addition to the obvious health and quality-of-life ramifications of dementia, there are high direct (e.g., subsidizing residential care needs) and indirect (e.g., lost productivity of family caregivers) economic costs. Implementing interventions to prevent MCI and dementia among older adults is of critical importance to health and maintained quality-of-life for millions of Americans. Recent data analyses from the Advanced Cognitive Training in Vital Elderly study (ACTIVE) indicate that a specific cognitive intervention, speed of processing training (SPT), significantly delays the incidence of cognitive impairment across 10 years. The primary contribution of the proposed research will be the determination of whether this cognitive training technique successfully delays the onset of clinically defined MCI or dementia across three years. Read Less