Spinal Cord InjuryNCT01984476
Impact of Age on Cardiovascular, Cerebrovascular and Cognitive Health in Spinal Cord Injury
An observational study of Spinal Cord Injury, run by James J. Peters Veterans Affairs Medical Center at 1 site in United States.
Trial summary
As the spinal cord injured population ages, these individuals are being exposed to an increased prevalence of age-associated diseases, which coupled with the secondary complications of the injury may contribute to the reduced life expectancies. Read more about this study
- Who is it for?
- Ages 25 to 65 yearsHealthy volunteers can take part
- Conditions the study is for
- Spinal Cord Injury
- How many people
- 120 participants
- Where
- 1 siteUnited States
- Study dates
- Jul 2013to Jul 2017
- Phase
- Observational
- Are there results?
- None posted in the registry
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 25 to 65 years
- All sexes
- Healthy volunteers accepted
- Adult, Older adult
Study population: 60 subjects with SCI, 30 age-matched non-SCI controls and 20 older non-SCI controls will be recruited from out-patient clinics at Kessler Institute for Rehabilitation. This includes subjects who have completed various protocols in the Cardiovascular autonomic testing laboratory or patients referred by their physicians following routine physical examinations. Physicians will be informed of the inclusion and exclusion criteria for this study and will be able to provide us with the assurance that the patient is an appropriate candidate for the study and that he/she was willing to speak with the study coordinators.
Who may be able to join
- SCI
- Between the ages of 25 and 49 years old
- Duration of injury must be between 5 and 10 years
- AIS grade of A or B
- Non-ambulatory (wheelchair dependent)
- At least 20/60 minimum acuity in worst eye on the Snell Eye Exam
Show all 21Show fewer
- A score ≥24 on the Montreal Cognitive Assessment
- English literate
- Able to provide informed consent
- Age-matched non-SCI
- Between the ages of 25 and 49 years old
- At least 20/60 minimum acuity in worst eye on the Snell Eye Exam
- A score ≥24 on the Montreal Cognitive Assessment
- English literate
- Able to provide informed consent
- Older non-SCI
- Between the ages of 55 and 65 years old
- At least 20/60 minimum acuity in worst eye on the Snell Eye Exam
- A score ≥24 on the Montreal Cognitive Assessment
- English literate
- Able to provide informed consent
Who cannot join
- Acute illness or infection
- Documented history of:
- Controlled or uncontrolled hypertension or Diabetes mellitus
- Recent illicit drug abuse (from medical chart, within the past 6-months)
- Epilepsy or seizures
- Neurodegenerative disease including Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, Dementia, Stroke, Multiple sclerosis
Show all 27Show fewer
- Severe TBI (identified by TBI screening tool)
- Any significant history of psychiatric disease/disorders:
- Post-traumatic stress disorder
- schizophrenia
- Bipolar disease
- Substance abuse or dependence within the past 6 months
- MRI has additional exclusion:
- Subject has been informed that it is medically unsafe to receive a regular MRI as part of my medical care
- Pregnant
- Right handed
- Prone to claustrophobia
- Metal in body including:
- metal fragments or pieces in subject's eye or any other part of body
- brain stimulators
- pacemakers, or other implanted electrical devices or pumps
- aneurysm clips
- metallic prostheses (including metal pins and rods, heart valves)
- internal hearing aids
- permanent eyeliner
- shrapnel fragments
- piercing that cannot be taken out
Trial locations and contacts
1 site in 1 country.
United States1 site
Kessler Foundation Research Center
West Orange, New Jersey, 07052
About this study
As the spinal cord injured population ages, these individuals are being exposed to an increased prevalence of age-associated diseases, which coupled with the secondary complications of the injury may contribute to the reduced life expectancies. Decentralized autonomic regulation in persons with SCI results in a multitude of cardiovascular changes, which may contribute to accelerated aging. Adverse cardiovascular changes may have deleterious effects on cerebral blood flow dynamics and an increase in cerebral vascular resistance index in individuals with SCI during cognitive testing. Deficits in memory and processing speed in individuals with SCI may relate to cardiovascular and cerebrovascular dysfunction. Identifying the associations between healthy aging versus premature or accelerated aging in organ system function in the SCI population is an important first step towards prevention and amelioration of these changes. Therefore the study objectives are to compare, among individuals with SCI, age-matched non-SCI and older non-SCI individuals arterial stiffness and cerebral vascular resistance index; memory, processing speed, and executive function; and volume of white matter hyperintensities. 60 individuals with SCI, 30 age-matched non-SCI controls, and 20 older non-SCI controls will be recruited for this study. All potential subjects will undergo a two-part screening process which consists of an initial screening via telephone and a detailed, in-person screening. Eligible subjects will be invited to participate in a 4 hour laboratory visit during which their arterial stiffness, blood pressure, heart rate, respiration rate and, blood flow to the brain will be monitored at rest and during a comprehensive series of cognitive tests. A subset of the participants will be asked to take part in an MRI brain imaging session: 40 persons with SCI, 10 age-matched non-SCI and 10 older non-SCI. Eligible subjects will be asked to participate in a 1 hour MRI/functional magnetic resonance imaging(fMRI) session.
We hypothesize that arterial stiffness and cerebral vascular resistance index will be increased in the SCI group compared to the age-matched non-SCI but will be comparable to the older non-SCI groups. In addition, we hypothesize that the prevalence of mild to moderate cognitive impairments in memory, processing speed, and executive function will be increased in the SCI individuals compared to the age-matched non-SCI but will be comparable to the older non-SCI individuals.
Read the detailed description
The cognitive test battery will consists of the tests listed below, administered in the order given.
- Digit Span
- California Verbal Learning Test
- Symbol Digit Modalities Test
- Letter Number Sequencing
- California Verbal Learning Test Delay
- Paced Auditory Serial Addition Test
- D-KEFS Verbal Fluency
- D-KEFS Color-Word
- WASI Vocabulary
- WASI Matrix Reasoning
- Conditions
- Spinal Cord Injury
- Keywords
- spinal cord injury, autonomic dysreflexia, baroreceptor integrity, sympathetic integrity, vagal integrity, autonomic integrity, arterial stiffness, cognitive function, traumatic brain injury, cerebral blood flow, white matter hyperintensities, cerebral vascular resistance index
- Medical subject headings
- Spinal Cord Injuries, Autonomic Dysreflexia, Brain Injuries, Traumatic
What participants receive
What participants receive. In a randomised study each person is assigned to one group by chance.
| Study group | Role | What they receive |
|---|---|---|
| Older Able-Bodied Controls | Subjects must be between the age of 55 and 65 years old, be English-literate and able to provide informed consent. They must score at least 20/60 minimum acuity in their worst eye on the Snell Eye Exam, and score at least 24 on the Montreal Cognitive Assessment. Subjects MUST NOT HAVE: an acute illness or infection, history of stroke, recent illicit drug abuse (<6 months), controlled or uncontrolled hypertension or diabetes mellitus, history of epilepsy or other seizure disorder, history of Traumatic Brain Injury (as determined by TBI screening tool), any significant history of neurological disease/disorder, and diagnosis of a psychiatric disorder such as post-traumatic stress disorder, schizophrenia or bipolar disorder. | |
| Spinal Cord Injured | Subjects must be between the age of 25 and 49 years old, be English-literate and able to provide informed consent. They must be injured between 5 to 10 years, level of injury between C1-T12, non-ambulatory (wheelchair dependent), and AIS grade of A or B. They must score at least 20/60 minimum acuity in their worst eye on the Snell Eye Exam, and score at least 24 on the Montreal Cognitive Assessment. Subjects MUST NOT HAVE: an acute illness or infection, history of stroke, recent illicit drug abuse (<6 months), controlled or uncontrolled hypertension or diabetes mellitus, history of epilepsy or other seizure disorder, history of Traumatic Brain Injury (as determined by TBI screening tool), any significant history of neurological disease/disorder, and diagnosis of a psychiatric disorder such as post-traumatic stress disorder, schizophrenia or bipolar disorder. | |
| Age-Matched Able-Bodied Controls | Subjects must be between the age of 25 and 49 years old, be English-literate and able to provide informed consent. They must score at least 20/60 minimum acuity in their worst eye on the Snell Eye Exam, and score at least 24 on the Montreal Cognitive Assessment. Subjects MUST NOT HAVE: an acute illness or infection, history of stroke, recent illicit drug abuse (<6 months), controlled or uncontrolled hypertension or diabetes mellitus, history of epilepsy or other seizure disorder, history of Traumatic Brain Injury (as determined by TBI screening tool), any significant history of neurological disease/disorder, and diagnosis of a psychiatric disorder such as post-traumatic stress disorder, schizophrenia or bipolar disorder. |
What is being measured
The primary outcome is the main question the study is designed to answer.
Arterial Stiffness
To determine the difference in arterial stiffness among individuals with SCI to age-matched non-SCI and older non-SCI.
Measured: Up to 2 years
Cerebral Vascular Resistance Index
To determine the difference in cerebral vascular resistance index among individuals with SCI to age-matched non-SCI and older non-SCI.
Measured: Up to 2 years
Secondary outcomes (1)
Performance on Cognition Battery Tests
To compare memory, processing speed, and executive function among individuals with SCI to age-matched non-SCI and older non-SCI.
Measured: Up to 2 years
Timeline
From the start of the study to its completion; the mark is today. Estimated dates are the sponsor’s plan.
- First posted14 Nov 2013 (estimated)
- Study startJul 2013
- Primary completionJul 2017
- Study completionJul 2017
Resources
- Official record on ClinicalTrials.govThe registry entry this page is built from, with its full change history.
- Other trials for Spinal Cord InjuryStudies of the same condition, open and under way.
- What the trial phases meanHow a treatment moves from first tests in people to approval.
More details
For doctors and researchers: how the study is designed, who runs it, and its registry IDs.
Study design
- Study type
- Observational
- Observational model
- Case-control
- Time perspective
- Cross-sectional
- Enrolment
- 120 participants (actual)
Sponsor and investigators
- Lead sponsor
- James J. Peters Veterans Affairs Medical Center
- Sponsor type
- US federal agency
- Collaborators
- Kessler Foundation
- Responsible party
- Principal investigator, Jill M. Wecht, Ed.D., James J. Peters Veterans Affairs Medical Center
- Investigators
- Jill M Wecht, EdD, Principal investigator, JJPVAMC
IDs, dates and publications
- ClinicalTrials.gov ID
- NCT01984476
- Sponsor's protocol ID
- WEC-13-042
- Status last verified
- Oct 2017
- First submitted
- 8 Nov 2013
- Last updated
- 17 Oct 2017
- Results posted
- No
- Data monitoring committee
- No
Study at a glance
From the registry record, last updated by the sponsor on 17 Oct 2017. Recruitment status is as the sponsor reported it: confirm with the study team.
- Official title
- Impact of Age on Cardiovascular, Cerebrovascular and Cognitive Health in Spinal Cord Injury
- ClinicalTrials.gov ID
- NCT01984476
- Acronym / sponsor ID
- WEC-13-042
- Conditions
- Spinal Cord Injury
- Keywords
- spinal cord injury, autonomic dysreflexia, baroreceptor integrity, sympathetic integrity, vagal integrity, autonomic integrity, arterial stiffness, cognitive function
- Study type
- Observational
- Recruitment status
- Completed
- Enrolment
- 120 participants (actual)
- Lead sponsor
- James J. Peters Veterans Affairs Medical CenterUS federal agency
- Collaborators
- Kessler Foundation
- Study start
- Jul 2013
- Primary completion
- Jul 2017 (actual)
- Study completion
- Jul 2017 (actual)
- First posted
- 14 Nov 2013 (estimated)
- Results
- Not posted in the source record
Clinical summary
The research question as the sponsor registered it. This describes what the study plans to test, not what it found.
As the spinal cord injured population ages, these individuals are being exposed to an increased prevalence of age-associated diseases, which coupled with the secondary complications of the injury may contribute to the reduced life expectancies. Decentralized autonomic regulation in persons with SCI results in a multitude of cardiovascular changes, which may contribute to accelerated aging. Adverse cardiovascular changes may have deleterious effects on cerebral blood flow dynamics and an increase in cerebral vascular resistance index in individuals with SCI during cognitive testing. Deficits in memory and processing speed in individuals with SCI may relate to cardiovascular and cerebrovascular dysfunction. Identifying the associations between healthy aging versus premature or accelerated aging in organ system function in the SCI population is an important first step towards prevention and amelioration of these changes. Therefore the study objectives are to compare, among individuals with SCI, age-matched non-SCI and older non-SCI individuals arterial stiffness and cerebral vascular resistance index; memory, processing speed, and executive function; and volume of white matter hyperintensities. 60 individuals with SCI, 30 age-matched non-SCI controls, and 20 older non-SCI controls will be recruited for this study. All potential subjects will undergo a two-part screening process which consists of an initial screening via telephone and a detailed, in-person screening. Eligible subjects will be invited to participate in a 4 hour laboratory visit during which their arterial stiffness, blood pressure, heart rate, respiration rate and, blood flow to the brain will be monitored at rest and during a comprehensive series of cognitive tests. A subset of the participants will be asked to take part in an MRI brain imaging session: 40 persons with SCI, 10 age-matched non-SCI and 10 older non-SCI. Eligible subjects will be asked to participate in a 1 hour MRI/functional magnetic resonance imaging(fMRI) session.
We hypothesize that arterial stiffness and cerebral vascular resistance index will be increased in the SCI group compared to the age-matched non-SCI but will be comparable to the older non-SCI groups. In addition, we hypothesize that the prevalence of mild to moderate cognitive impairments in memory, processing speed, and executive function will be increased in the SCI individuals compared to the age-matched non-SCI but will be comparable to the older non-SCI individuals.
Detailed description
The cognitive test battery will consists of the tests listed below, administered in the order given.
- Digit Span
- California Verbal Learning Test
- Symbol Digit Modalities Test
- Letter Number Sequencing
- California Verbal Learning Test Delay
- Paced Auditory Serial Addition Test
- D-KEFS Verbal Fluency
- D-KEFS Color-Word
- WASI Vocabulary
- WASI Matrix Reasoning
Study design
- Observational model
- Case-control
- Time perspective
- Cross-sectional
- Number of arms
- 3
| Arm | Type | Receives |
|---|---|---|
| Older Able-Bodied Controls | – | –Subjects must be between the age of 55 and 65 years old, be English-literate and able to provide informed consent. They must score at least 20/60 minimum acuity in their worst eye on the Snell Eye Exam, and score at least 24 on the Montreal Cognitive Assessment. Subjects MUST NOT HAVE: an acute illness or infection, history of stroke, recent illicit drug abuse (<6 months), controlled or uncontrolled hypertension or diabetes mellitus, history of epilepsy or other seizure disorder, history of Traumatic Brain Injury (as determined by TBI screening tool), any significant history of neurological disease/disorder, and diagnosis of a psychiatric disorder such as post-traumatic stress disorder, schizophrenia or bipolar disorder. |
| Spinal Cord Injured | – | –Subjects must be between the age of 25 and 49 years old, be English-literate and able to provide informed consent. They must be injured between 5 to 10 years, level of injury between C1-T12, non-ambulatory (wheelchair dependent), and AIS grade of A or B. They must score at least 20/60 minimum acuity in their worst eye on the Snell Eye Exam, and score at least 24 on the Montreal Cognitive Assessment. Subjects MUST NOT HAVE: an acute illness or infection, history of stroke, recent illicit drug abuse (<6 months), controlled or uncontrolled hypertension or diabetes mellitus, history of epilepsy or other seizure disorder, history of Traumatic Brain Injury (as determined by TBI screening tool), any significant history of neurological disease/disorder, and diagnosis of a psychiatric disorder such as post-traumatic stress disorder, schizophrenia or bipolar disorder. |
| Age-Matched Able-Bodied Controls | – | –Subjects must be between the age of 25 and 49 years old, be English-literate and able to provide informed consent. They must score at least 20/60 minimum acuity in their worst eye on the Snell Eye Exam, and score at least 24 on the Montreal Cognitive Assessment. Subjects MUST NOT HAVE: an acute illness or infection, history of stroke, recent illicit drug abuse (<6 months), controlled or uncontrolled hypertension or diabetes mellitus, history of epilepsy or other seizure disorder, history of Traumatic Brain Injury (as determined by TBI screening tool), any significant history of neurological disease/disorder, and diagnosis of a psychiatric disorder such as post-traumatic stress disorder, schizophrenia or bipolar disorder. |
Who may qualify
- Ages
- 25 to 65 years
- Sex
- All
- Healthy volunteers
- Accepted
- Age groups
- Adult, Older adult
- Study population
- 60 subjects with SCI, 30 age-matched non-SCI controls and 20 older non-SCI controls will be recruited from out-patient clinics at Kessler Institute for Rehabilitation. This includes subjects who have completed various protocols in the Cardiovascular autonomic testing laboratory or patients referred by their physicians following routine physical examinations. Physicians will be informed of the inclusion and exclusion criteria for this study and will be able to provide us with the assurance that the patient is an appropriate candidate for the study and that he/she was willing to speak with the study coordinators.
Key inclusion criteria (21 listed)
- SCI
- Between the ages of 25 and 49 years old
- Duration of injury must be between 5 and 10 years
- AIS grade of A or B
- Non-ambulatory (wheelchair dependent)
Key exclusion criteria (27 listed)
- Acute illness or infection
- Documented history of:
- Controlled or uncontrolled hypertension or Diabetes mellitus
- Recent illicit drug abuse (from medical chart, within the past 6-months)
- Epilepsy or seizures
Eligibility is decided by the study team after screening; this overview does not establish that a patient qualifies. Full inclusion and exclusion criteria.
Primary outcome
Arterial Stiffness
Time frame: Up to 2 years
To determine the difference in arterial stiffness among individuals with SCI to age-matched non-SCI and older non-SCI.
Cerebral Vascular Resistance Index
Time frame: Up to 2 years
To determine the difference in cerebral vascular resistance index among individuals with SCI to age-matched non-SCI and older non-SCI.
1 secondary outcome
Performance on Cognition Battery Tests
Time frame: Up to 2 years
Results and safety
The study is completed, but results are not available in the source record. That does not mean the treatment did or did not work.
Research links
- Official record on ClinicalTrials.govLast updated by the sponsor 17 Oct 2017.
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Referral and contact
AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals. Contact the study team or a site listed below; they decide who can take part. This study is not recruiting at the moment.
Jill M Wecht, EdD principal investigator
JJPVAMC
1 site in 1 country: see every site and its status.
Questions about this trial
What is this clinical trial studying?
An observational study of Spinal Cord Injury, run by James J. Peters Veterans Affairs Medical Center at 1 site 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 21 inclusion and 27 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 17 Oct 2017. Status can change between updates, so confirm with the study contact before making plans.
Where is the study taking place?
The record lists 1 site 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?
The study is completed, but results are not available in the source record. That does not mean the treatment did or did not work.
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?
Arterial Stiffness (time frame: Up to 2 years). The study lists 2 primary outcomes in all. It is what the study was designed to measure, not a finding.
Where can I read the original study information?
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 17 Oct 2017.