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Parkinson's DiseaseNCT00320242

Laser Light Cues for Gait Freezing in Parkinson's Disease

A study testing 1 mo baseline before visual cue in people with Parkinson's Disease, run by Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center at 2 sites in United States.

Completed

Finished. The study has ended and is not enrolling. Results may be posted on the official record.

Official record
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Trial summary

The purpose of this study is to gather data to see if the Laser Cane and/or U-Step Walker with laser accessory is more effective in aiding with gait freezing than a regular cane/U-Step Walker in patients who have idiopathic Parkinson's disease. Read more about this study

Who is it for?
Ages 18 years and older
Conditions the study is for
Parkinson's Disease
What is being tested?
1 mo baseline before visual cue
Type of treatment
Medical device
Could I receive a placebo?
No, everyone receives an active treatment
How many people
32 participants
Where
2 sitesUnited States
Study dates
Apr 2006to Jun 2009
Phase
Interventional
Are there results?
Yes, posted in the registrySummary in the doctors' view

Key requirements

Who can take part, as listed by the sponsor. Only the study team can confirm whether you are eligible, so take this list to your doctor.

  • Ages 18 years and older
  • All sexes
  • No healthy volunteers
  • Adult, Older adult

Who may be able to join

  • Subjects or a designated proxy have given informed consent
  • Subject has been diagnosed with idiopathic Parkinson's disease
  • Subject is ambulatory. If a wheelchair is used part-time, it must be used for less than 50% of the time
  • Positive assessment for Questionnaire Used to Identify Freezing of Gait in PD Patients at subject's best "on"

Who cannot join

  • Presence of atypical features suggestive of MSA, PSP, ataxia, unexplained or prominent pyramidal signs, and/or autonomic dysfunction
  • Subjects who are non-ambulatory more than 50% of the time
  • Subjects who have had a history of syncope in the 6 months prior to screening
  • Subjects with moderate or advanced dementia

Trial locations and contacts

2 sites in 1 country.

United States2 sites
  • Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center

    Boston, Massachusetts, 02215

  • The Neurological Institute of New York at Columbia University

    New York, New York, 10032

Other trials in United States

About this study

Official title: An Open Label Study to Assess the Efficacy of Visual Cues in the Form of the Laser Cane or the U-Step Walker With Laser Accessory in Parkinson's Disease Patients Who Experience Freezing of Gait.

The purpose of this study is to gather data to see if the Laser Cane and/or U-Step Walker with laser accessory is more effective in aiding with gait freezing than a regular cane/U-Step Walker in patients who have idiopathic Parkinson's disease.

Read the detailed description

Freezing of gait is a significant clinical problem in Parkinson's disease (PD). It interferes with daily functioning and quality of life and often results in falls that potentially can inflict serious injury. In recent years, much more attention has been focused on the clinical characteristics of gait freezing, the severity of falls that can result, and the use of visual cues as a possible treatment in order to understand the implications of episodic freezing. Few clinical studies have been done to confirm the clinical observations to date. The laser cane is a device that has been used and prescribed in movement disorder centers as the only form of treatment for freezing of gait. Although it has been shown to be effective in many cases, there is no published data to support what has been observed in the clinic. The proposed study seeks to clarify unanswered questions regarding the laser cane and its efficacy in aiding with episodic gait freezing and falls.

Being tested
1 mo baseline before visual cue
Keywords
Parkinson's disease, laser cane, freezing of gait, visual cues
Medical subject headings
Parkinson Disease

What participants receive

What participants receive. In a randomised study each person is assigned to one group by chance.

  • 1 mo baseline before visual cueDevice

    Also called U-Step Walking Stabilizer

    Laser Cane with Laser Accessory and/or U-Step Walker with Laser Accessory

Study groups in NCT00320242
Study groupRoleWhat they receive
1 mo baselineActive comparator1 mo baseline before visual cue: Cane or walker, no laserlight visual cue x 1 mo; + laserlight visual cue for 2nd mo
Receives: Device: 1 mo baseline before visual cue
2 month baselineNo interventionCane or walker, no laserlight visual cue x 2 mo, + laserlight visual cue for 3rd mo

What is being measured

The primary outcome is the main question the study is designed to answer.

  1. Mean Change From Baseline (Visit 1 Until Visit 2) to Endpoint (After Visit 2 Until Visit 3) in the Freezing of Gait Questionnaire Score.

    The FOGQ has a minimum of 0 and max of 4 for each question, with 4 representing more severe freezing of gait. There are 6 questions, so the total score ranges from 0 to 24. It was pre-specified that all 26 subjects were treated as a single group with respect to the primary outcome measure regardless of whether or not they had a 1 month or 2 month baseline period.

    Measured: 2-3 months

Secondary outcomes (3)
  1. Mean Change in Time to Perform the Timed Gait Test With vs Without the Laser Feature

    Mean change in time to perform the timed gait test with versus without the laser feature from visit 1 to visit 3. It was pre-specified that all 26 subjects would be treated as a single group with respect to the outcome measure regardless of whether or not they had a 1 month or 2 month baseline period

    Measured: 2-3 months

  2. Mean Change in Number of Falls Without Versus With the Laserlight Visual Cue.

    Mean change in falls per week for the period between visit 1 and visit 2 (without laserlight visual cue) compared to the period between visit 2 and visit 3 (with the laserlight visual cue).

    Measured: 2-3 months

  3. Percentage Change in Falls

    The mean change in fall frequency from the baseline period without the laserlight visual cue compared to the subsequent period during which they used the laserlight visual cue among subjects experiencing at least one fall during the baseline and subsequent study periods. This outcome measure is expressed as a percentage change from the baseline period.

    Measured: 1 to 2 months

Timeline

From the start of the study to its completion; the mark is today. Estimated dates are the sponsor’s plan.

  1. First posted3 May 2006 (estimated)
  2. Study startApr 2006
  3. Primary completionJun 2009
  4. Study completionJun 2009

Resources

More details

For doctors and researchers: how the study is designed, who runs it, and its registry IDs.

Study design
Study type
Interventional
Phase
Phase N/A
Primary purpose
Treatment
Allocation
Randomised
Intervention model
Parallel groups
Masking
None (open label)
Enrolment
32 participants (actual)
IDs, dates and publications
ClinicalTrials.gov ID
NCT00320242
Sponsor's protocol ID
2006P000085
Status last verified
Jun 2017
First submitted
28 Apr 2006
Last updated
14 Jul 2017
Data monitoring committee
No
FDA-regulated drug
No
FDA-regulated device
Yes
Individual data sharing
No: Some individual participant data was included in the publication. There is no plan to share additional individual participant data.

Publications

  • Donovan S, Lim C, Diaz N, Browner N, Rose P, Sudarsky LR, Tarsy D, Fahn S, Simon DK. Laserlight cues for gait freezing in Parkinson's disease: an open-label study. Parkinsonism Relat Disord. 2011 May;17(4):240-5. doi: 10.1016/j.parkreldis.2010.08.010. Epub 2010 Sep 3.

    PubMed 20817535

Questions about this trial

What is this clinical trial studying?

A study testing 1 mo baseline before visual cue in people with Parkinson's Disease, run by Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center at 2 sites in United States.

The full registered description is in the About this study section and the official record.

Who may be eligible to take part?

The sponsor lists 4 inclusion and 4 exclusion criteria. Eligibility is decided by the study team after screening, so read the full criteria and contact a listed site.

Is this clinical trial currently recruiting?

The record says: finished, as of the sponsor's last update on 14 Jul 2017. Status can change between updates, so confirm with the study contact before making plans.

Where is the study taking place?

The record lists 2 sites in United States. Whether a site is taking part right now should be confirmed with that site. See every site.

What are the possible benefits and risks?

They depend on the study and the treatment, and no study can promise a benefit. The study team explains the known risks during informed consent, before anyone joins; the record itself does not list them.

Are results available for this study?

Yes. Results are posted in the registry (first posted 14 Jul 2017). A summary is in the For doctors view, and the full results are on ClinicalTrials.gov.

How can a doctor refer a patient or contact the research team?

The record lists no contact. The official record names the sponsor, who can be asked directly. AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals.

What does the primary outcome measure?

Mean Change From Baseline (Visit 1 Until Visit 2) to Endpoint (After Visit 2 Until Visit 3) in the Freezing of Gait Questionnaire Score. (time frame: 2-3 months). It is what the study was designed to measure, not a finding.

Where can I read the original study information?

On the ClinicalTrials.gov record for NCT00320242, which also lists 1 linked publication.

Does a listing mean the treatment is approved or proven to work?

No. A listing means the study is registered. It does not show that the treatment is safe, works, or is approved by a regulator.

How often is this information updated?

AzTrials copies changed records from ClinicalTrials.gov every night and reloads the whole registry every week. The sponsor last updated this record on 14 Jul 2017.

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