Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation in the diagnosis of Atypical Parkinsonism

Status

Recruiting

Phases

Unknown

Study type

Observational

Source

ANZCTR

Registry ID

ACTRN12617000934347

Enrollment

Registered

2017-06-28

Start date

2016-07-07

Completion date

2017-12-29

Last updated

2017-07-04

For informational purposes only — not medical advice. Sourced from public registries and may not reflect the latest updates. Terms

Conditions

None listed

Brief summary

Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation is capable of inducing action potentials in cortical neurones, and provides the capacity to measure cortical neuronal excitability and interneuronal function. Preliminary data in previous studies shows this may be a method for measuring neuronal function in Progressive Supranuclear Palsy, which may enable its use as a biomarker. The intention of this study is to determine if these measurements are able to distinguish PSP from other parkinsonian syndromes with similar clinical features, ie. Multiple System Atrophy and Parkinson's Disease, and if these measurements correlate with markers of disease activity including cognitive changes. Results will also be compared with a group of healthy control participants to determine the reliability of these measurements.

Interventions

Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS) TMS will be performed on each participant including measures of intracortical inhibition and facilitation, resting motor thresholds and motor evoked potentials before and after theta burst stimulation. The TMS protocol is expected to take 2-3 hours. In addition each participant will undergo standardised cognitive tests.

Eligibility

Sex/Gender

All

Age

40 Years to No maximum

Healthy volunteers

Yes

Inclusion criteria

Four groups to be recruited: 1. 10 People with Progressive Supranuclear Palsy as defined by National Institute of Neurological Diseases and Stroke criteria 2. 15 People with "probable" or "possible" Multiple System Atrophy according to published consensus criteria (Golbe criteria) 3. 15 People with Parkinson's Disease according to Queens Square Brain Bank criteria 4. 20 normal controls over 40 years of age without symptoms of neurodegenerative brain disease or parkinsonism

Exclusion criteria

1.People with epilepsy 2.People with intracranial metal which may increase the risk of seizures or injury due to Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation 3. People not able to complete clinical rating scales including cognitive assessment 4. Patients deemed not capable of consenting to involvement in the study and for whom an appropriate person responsible is not available to participate in the consenting process

Outcome results