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Promoting Adaptive Neuroplasticity in Mild Cognitive Impairment

Promoting Adaptive Neuroplasticity in Mild Cognitive Impairment

Status
Completed
Phases
NA
Study type
Interventional
Source
ClinicalTrials.gov
Registry ID
NCT02155946
Enrollment
107
Registered
2014-06-04
Start date
2014-12-01
Completion date
2021-03-31
Last updated
2023-11-30

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

Conditions

Alzheimer's Disease, Mild Cognitive Impairment

Keywords

Aging, Alzheimer's Disease/Dementia, Cognitive Disorders, Imaging, Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI), Neurology, Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation, transcranial direct current stimulation

Brief summary

The aging US population threatens to overwhelm our healthcare infrastructure, especially since the rate of Alzheimer's disease (AD) alone is expected to triple in the coming decades. Memory cause functional impairment, reduced quality of life, increased caregiver burnout, and eventual institutionalization. The diagnosis of mild cognitive impairment (MCI) identifies those with memory deficits but who remain relatively independent in everyday life. MCI provides a window for interventions that target memory functioning. The proposed study focuses specifically on a groundbreaking combination of mnemonic rehabilitation and non-invasive brain stimulation. The main idea is that brain stimulation can enhance functioning in the specific brain regions/networks, thereby increasing the patients' ability to benefit from different types of memory rehabilitation. This will be a randomized, double-blind study (active vs. fake brain stimulation), that provides multiple treatment session. Outcome will be examined using both laboratory-based and real-world memory testing as well as brain imaging. This first-of-its-kind study has the potential to meaningfully translate more basic science findings into neuroanatomically targeted and functionally meaningful treatments for our aging population.

Detailed description

Enrollment and interactions/interventions are temporarily paused due to COVID-19 and are expected to resume in the future. This is not a suspension of IRB approval. The proposed study focuses specifically on a groundbreaking combination of mnemonic rehabilitation and non-invasive brain stimulation. The main idea is that brain stimulation can enhance functioning in the specific brain regions/networks, thereby increasing the patients' ability to benefit from memory rehabilitation. This will be a randomized, double-blind study (active vs. fake brain stimulation), that provides multiple treatment session. Outcome will be examined using both laboratory-based and real-world memory testing as well as brain imaging. This first-of-its-kind study has the potential to meaningfully translate more basic science findings into neuroanatomically targeted and functionally meaningful treatments for our aging population. The general purpose of this study is to examine the effects of two types of treatments for memory impairment in those with mild cognitive impairment (MCI). One form of treatment is cognitive rehabilitation, which involves teaching new ways to learn and remember information. The second form of treatment uses a type of electrical brain stimulation called transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) to increase activity in certain brain areas that may be involved with memory. We will use brain imaging to see whether these treatments changed how individuals learn and remember information. We will also use cognitive tests and questionnaires to examine whether memory (and related abilities) changed because of treatment. Values were updated in February 2023 after discovering coding errors in the original database. An exploratory outcome variable (effect of brain volumes) was removed at that time since the electrical field analyses are fundamentally dependent on brain volumes - the EF outcome measure remained but was modified to remove the two sham conditions since, by design, they did not receive any electric field (i.e., sham) and the statistical corrections could not be performed.

Interventions

DEVICETranscranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) Soterix Medical Inc. tDCS unit

Active brain stimulation

Sponsors

VA Office of Research and Development
Lead SponsorFED

Study design

Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Intervention model
PARALLEL
Primary purpose
TREATMENT
Masking
DOUBLE (Subject, Investigator)

Eligibility

Sex/Gender
ALL
Age
50 Years to 88 Years
Healthy volunteers
No

Inclusion criteria

General inclusion criteria (all patients): * All medications stable for approximately 2-3 months; * No history of severe mental illness; * No current untreated alcohol or substance abuse/dependence; * English as native and preferred language; * MRI-compatible if taking part in fMRI studies * Able to give informed consent. MCI Inclusion Criteria: \- Diagnosis of amnestic MCI based on criteria set forth by Petersen (2004). Additionally, other potential causes of cognitive deficit ruled out by the referring physician

Exclusion criteria

* History of neurological disease or injury * History of severe mental illness * Current untreated alcohol or substance abuse * Other conditions may exclude; please discuss with contact

Design outcomes

Primary

MeasureTime frameDescription
fMRI Betaweight Changechange from baseline to post session 5 (day 5 after baseline)Changes in task related blood oxygen dependent signal (BOLD) activation for the face-name (novel post \> novel pre) contrast in the left inferior frontal gyrus (pars triangularis, pars orbitalis, pars opercularis). Data are preliminary betaweights for the above noted contrast. Positive values reflect increased BOLD signal while negative values represent reduced BOLD signal. Not all participants were able to complete fMRI, which explains sample size discrepancies with other outcome measures. Data coding errors were discovered and accurate, updated data reported on 2/6/2023
Object Location Association Memory Test Performance - Recognition Conditionchange from baseline to post session 5 (day 5 after baseline)Performance measured using number of correctly identified locations (3 locations per stimulus; 15 total stimuli). Higher values indicate better performance. Change at post-session 5 (day 5 after baseline) calculated relative to baseline performance (positive differences indicate improvement; negative values indicate decline). Data coding errors were identified and accurate data were updated 2/6/2023.
Face-name Memory Test Performancechange from baseline to post session 5 (day 5 after baseline)Raw number of face-name pairs correctly recalled with a maximum of 15 points; higher values are better at each time point. Change at post-session 5 (day 5 after baseline)) calculated relative to baseline performance (positive differences indicate improvement; negative values indicate decline). Data coding errors were identified and accurate values were reported 2/6/2023.

Secondary

MeasureTime frameDescription
Spatial Navigationchange from baseline to post session 5 (day 5 after baseline)Performance on Ecological Memory Simulations routes subtest (serial order). Higher values indicate better performance at each time point (0-9 possible points at each time point). Change from baseline is reported (post-session day 5 vs. baseline) so higher values indicate better recall while negative values indicate decline. Corrected data are now reported (2/23) accounting for age, sex, and baseline neuropsychological abilities.
Prose Memorychange from baseline to post Session 5 (day 5 after baseline)Performance on the Ecological Memory Simulations- Medical Instructions subtest. Raw points where higher values reflect better performance at each time point (0-15 possible points at each time point). Reported values reflect change from baseline (i.e., post-session day 5 vs. baseline) where positive values represent improvement and negative values represent decline. Corrected values are now included (2/23) that account for age, sex, and baseline neuropsychological abilities.
MMQ - Strategy Subscalechange from baseline to post session 5 (day 5 after baseline)Changes on the Multifactorial Memory Questionnaire - strategy subscale. Raw points where higher values reflect better performance at each time point (0-76 possible points at each time point). Reported values reflect change from baseline (i.e., post-session day 5 vs. baseline) where positive values represent improvement and negative values represent decline.

Other

MeasureTime frameDescription
Planned (Tertiary) Analyses of Patient-specific Characteristics That Affect Treatment Outcomechange from baseline post treatment (within ~ 96 hours of session 5)Planned analyses to examine patient specific characteristics that affect treatment efficacy and would be vital for clinical translation at the individual patient level. Data analyzed using a composite recognition score that combined the face-name and object-location task recognition scores (total on a 0-30 point scale; values below are change from baseline; higher values are better and reflect improved memory test performance). Patient-level factors of age, sex, race, RBANS Delayed Memory Index, MoCA, Emory version of the Wisconsin Card Sorting Test (total sorts) were included as covariates.
Change in Beta-weights Controlling for Electric Field (EF)Betaweight change: Post session 5 (day 5) minus baselineOutcome measure is the change in betaweight (as a percent signal change: post session 5 minus baseline) during the face-name and object-location tasks (same metric as Primary Outcome measure 3) while controlling for the electric field (EF). Finite element model based measurement of electric field in the targeted brain regions (Values range from 0 to no theoretical upper limit with higher values reflecting more electrical current; most values will be under 0.5 V/m). The EF was calculated using the baseline MRI T1 scan for each individual. EF values were then included in the linear mixed model analysis of fMRI Beta-weight change (post training vs. baseline) since EF values at the targeted brain region varied across participants. Note, EF values only apply to active HD-tDCS groups, so sham groups have no data to report and were removed accordingly (updated 2/23).

Countries

United States

Participant flow

Participants by arm

ArmCount
Arm 1
Group receives active brain stimulation plus mnemonic strategy training Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) Soterix Medical Inc. tDCS unit: Active brain stimulation
29
Arm 2
Group receives sham brain stimulation plus mnemonic strategy training Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) Soterix Medical Inc. tDCS unit: Sham (placebo)
25
Arm 3
Group receives active brain stimulation plus autobiographical memory recall Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) Soterix Medical Inc. tDCS unit: Active brain stimulation
29
Arm 4
Group receives sham brain stimulation plus autobiographical memory recall Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) Soterix Medical Inc. tDCS unit: Sham (placebo)
24
Total107

Baseline characteristics

CharacteristicArm 4Arm 1Arm 2Arm 3Total
Age, Continuous74.04 Years
STANDARD_DEVIATION 6.2
72.59 Years
STANDARD_DEVIATION 7.31
73.88 Years
STANDARD_DEVIATION 6.08
72.31 Years
STANDARD_DEVIATION 7.36
73.14 Years
STANDARD_DEVIATION 6.76
Race (NIH/OMB)
American Indian or Alaska Native
0 Participants0 Participants0 Participants0 Participants0 Participants
Race (NIH/OMB)
Asian
0 Participants0 Participants0 Participants0 Participants0 Participants
Race (NIH/OMB)
Black or African American
1 Participants5 Participants2 Participants3 Participants11 Participants
Race (NIH/OMB)
More than one race
0 Participants0 Participants0 Participants0 Participants0 Participants
Race (NIH/OMB)
Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander
0 Participants0 Participants0 Participants0 Participants0 Participants
Race (NIH/OMB)
Unknown or Not Reported
0 Participants0 Participants0 Participants0 Participants0 Participants
Race (NIH/OMB)
White
23 Participants24 Participants23 Participants26 Participants96 Participants
Region of Enrollment
United States
24 Participants29 Participants25 Participants29 Participants107 Participants
Sex: Female, Male
Female
12 Participants13 Participants6 Participants11 Participants42 Participants
Sex: Female, Male
Male
12 Participants16 Participants19 Participants18 Participants65 Participants

Adverse events

Event typeEG000
affected / at risk
EG001
affected / at risk
EG002
affected / at risk
EG003
affected / at risk
deaths
Total, all-cause mortality
0 / 290 / 230 / 290 / 24
other
Total, other adverse events
0 / 290 / 230 / 290 / 24
serious
Total, serious adverse events
0 / 290 / 230 / 290 / 24

Outcome results

Primary

Face-name Memory Test Performance

Raw number of face-name pairs correctly recalled with a maximum of 15 points; higher values are better at each time point. Change at post-session 5 (day 5 after baseline)) calculated relative to baseline performance (positive differences indicate improvement; negative values indicate decline). Data coding errors were identified and accurate values were reported 2/6/2023.

Time frame: change from baseline to post session 5 (day 5 after baseline)

Population: Patient-level factors of age, sex, race, RBANS Delayed Memory Index, MoCA, Emory version of the Wisconsin Card Sorting Test were included as covariates.

ArmMeasureValue (MEAN)
Arm 1Face-name Memory Test Performance-.28 pairs correctly recalled/recognized
Arm 2Face-name Memory Test Performance-.01 pairs correctly recalled/recognized
Arm 3Face-name Memory Test Performance-1.29 pairs correctly recalled/recognized
Arm 4Face-name Memory Test Performance-1.76 pairs correctly recalled/recognized
Primary

fMRI Betaweight Change

Changes in task related blood oxygen dependent signal (BOLD) activation for the face-name (novel post \> novel pre) contrast in the left inferior frontal gyrus (pars triangularis, pars orbitalis, pars opercularis). Data are preliminary betaweights for the above noted contrast. Positive values reflect increased BOLD signal while negative values represent reduced BOLD signal. Not all participants were able to complete fMRI, which explains sample size discrepancies with other outcome measures. Data coding errors were discovered and accurate, updated data reported on 2/6/2023

Time frame: change from baseline to post session 5 (day 5 after baseline)

ArmMeasureValue (MEAN)
Arm 1fMRI Betaweight Change.34 Percent BOLD signal change
Arm 2fMRI Betaweight Change-.09 Percent BOLD signal change
Arm 3fMRI Betaweight Change.07 Percent BOLD signal change
Arm 4fMRI Betaweight Change-.13 Percent BOLD signal change
Primary

Object Location Association Memory Test Performance - Recognition Condition

Performance measured using number of correctly identified locations (3 locations per stimulus; 15 total stimuli). Higher values indicate better performance. Change at post-session 5 (day 5 after baseline) calculated relative to baseline performance (positive differences indicate improvement; negative values indicate decline). Data coding errors were identified and accurate data were updated 2/6/2023.

Time frame: change from baseline to post session 5 (day 5 after baseline)

Population: Patient-level factors of age, sex, race, RBANS Delayed Memory Index, MoCA, Emory version of the Wisconsin Card Sorting Test were included as covariates.

ArmMeasureValue (MEAN)
Arm 1Object Location Association Memory Test Performance - Recognition Condition.55 Number correct relative to baseline
Arm 2Object Location Association Memory Test Performance - Recognition Condition.25 Number correct relative to baseline
Arm 3Object Location Association Memory Test Performance - Recognition Condition.07 Number correct relative to baseline
Arm 4Object Location Association Memory Test Performance - Recognition Condition-.76 Number correct relative to baseline
Secondary

MMQ - Strategy Subscale

Changes on the Multifactorial Memory Questionnaire - strategy subscale. Raw points where higher values reflect better performance at each time point (0-76 possible points at each time point). Reported values reflect change from baseline (i.e., post-session day 5 vs. baseline) where positive values represent improvement and negative values represent decline.

Time frame: change from baseline to post session 5 (day 5 after baseline)

ArmMeasureValue (MEAN)
Arm 1MMQ - Strategy Subscale1.41 units on a scale
Arm 2MMQ - Strategy Subscale1.1 units on a scale
Arm 3MMQ - Strategy Subscale-1.9 units on a scale
Arm 4MMQ - Strategy Subscale-.5 units on a scale
Secondary

Prose Memory

Performance on the Ecological Memory Simulations- Medical Instructions subtest. Raw points where higher values reflect better performance at each time point (0-15 possible points at each time point). Reported values reflect change from baseline (i.e., post-session day 5 vs. baseline) where positive values represent improvement and negative values represent decline. Corrected values are now included (2/23) that account for age, sex, and baseline neuropsychological abilities.

Time frame: change from baseline to post Session 5 (day 5 after baseline)

ArmMeasureValue (MEAN)
Arm 1Prose Memory-1.07 units on a scale
Arm 2Prose Memory-1.18 units on a scale
Arm 3Prose Memory-.93 units on a scale
Arm 4Prose Memory-1.56 units on a scale
Secondary

Spatial Navigation

Performance on Ecological Memory Simulations routes subtest (serial order). Higher values indicate better performance at each time point (0-9 possible points at each time point). Change from baseline is reported (post-session day 5 vs. baseline) so higher values indicate better recall while negative values indicate decline. Corrected data are now reported (2/23) accounting for age, sex, and baseline neuropsychological abilities.

Time frame: change from baseline to post session 5 (day 5 after baseline)

ArmMeasureValue (MEAN)
Arm 1Spatial Navigation.59 units on a scale
Arm 2Spatial Navigation.74 units on a scale
Arm 3Spatial Navigation1.03 units on a scale
Arm 4Spatial Navigation.6 units on a scale
Other Pre-specified

Change in Beta-weights Controlling for Electric Field (EF)

Outcome measure is the change in betaweight (as a percent signal change: post session 5 minus baseline) during the face-name and object-location tasks (same metric as Primary Outcome measure 3) while controlling for the electric field (EF). Finite element model based measurement of electric field in the targeted brain regions (Values range from 0 to no theoretical upper limit with higher values reflecting more electrical current; most values will be under 0.5 V/m). The EF was calculated using the baseline MRI T1 scan for each individual. EF values were then included in the linear mixed model analysis of fMRI Beta-weight change (post training vs. baseline) since EF values at the targeted brain region varied across participants. Note, EF values only apply to active HD-tDCS groups, so sham groups have no data to report and were removed accordingly (updated 2/23).

Time frame: Betaweight change: Post session 5 (day 5) minus baseline

Population: linear mixed model that includes EF as a predictor variable as well as covariates of age, sex, education, and race.

ArmMeasureValue (MEAN)
Arm 1Change in Beta-weights Controlling for Electric Field (EF).11 % signal change (session 5 vs baseline)
Arm 2Change in Beta-weights Controlling for Electric Field (EF)-.03 % signal change (session 5 vs baseline)
Other Pre-specified

Planned (Tertiary) Analyses of Patient-specific Characteristics That Affect Treatment Outcome

Planned analyses to examine patient specific characteristics that affect treatment efficacy and would be vital for clinical translation at the individual patient level. Data analyzed using a composite recognition score that combined the face-name and object-location task recognition scores (total on a 0-30 point scale; values below are change from baseline; higher values are better and reflect improved memory test performance). Patient-level factors of age, sex, race, RBANS Delayed Memory Index, MoCA, Emory version of the Wisconsin Card Sorting Test (total sorts) were included as covariates.

Time frame: change from baseline post treatment (within ~ 96 hours of session 5)

Population: linear mixed model Data analyzed using a composite recognition total score that combined the face-name and object-location task (change on 0-30 point scale relative to baseline) higher scores are better). Patient-level factors of age, sex, race, RBANS Delayed Memory Index, MoCA, Emory version of the Wisconsin Card Sorting Test (total sorts) were included as covariates.

ArmMeasureValue (MEAN)
Arm 1Planned (Tertiary) Analyses of Patient-specific Characteristics That Affect Treatment Outcome.28 change in total score on 30 point scale
Arm 2Planned (Tertiary) Analyses of Patient-specific Characteristics That Affect Treatment Outcome.09 change in total score on 30 point scale
Arm 3Planned (Tertiary) Analyses of Patient-specific Characteristics That Affect Treatment Outcome-1.12 change in total score on 30 point scale
Arm 4Planned (Tertiary) Analyses of Patient-specific Characteristics That Affect Treatment Outcome-2.52 change in total score on 30 point scale

Source: ClinicalTrials.gov · Data processed: Feb 4, 2026