Rhythmic Auditory Stimulation on Neural Activity During Finger-tapping in PD Patients

Launched by THE HONG KONG POLYTECHNIC UNIVERSITY · Apr 28, 2023

Keywords

ClinConnect Summary

This clinical trial is studying how rhythmic auditory stimulation (RAS) – which involves listening to music or sounds with a beat – can affect the brain activity and movement of patients with Parkinson's disease (PD) while they perform a finger-tapping task. The goal is to understand how RAS can help improve slow movements, a common symptom of PD that can impact daily life. Researchers will compare the brain activity of PD patients to healthy individuals while they both listen to RAS and tap their fingers.

To participate, individuals must be diagnosed with idiopathic PD by a neurologist and be in stages 2 or 3 of the disease, which means they experience some difficulty with movement. They also need to have a certain level of cognitive ability to understand instructions and be right-handed. Healthy volunteers who meet similar cognitive and handedness criteria will also be included. Participants can expect to listen to rhythmic sounds while their brain activity is monitored, which will help researchers learn more about how RAS might improve movement in PD patients. This study aims to gather important information that could lead to new treatment options in the future.

Gender

ALL

Eligibility criteria

• Inclusion Criteria:
• • (a) idiopathic PD diagnosed by a neurologist based on the Movement Disorders Society clinical diagnostic criteria;
• • (b) the Hoehn and Yahr stage is 2 or 3, meaning that bilateral movement problems or combination with mild postural instability;
• • (c) a score of Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) is equal to or higher than 21 to ensure that they understand experimental instructions;
• • (d) a score of Edinburgh Handedness Inventory is above 60 to ensure that they are right-handed;
• • (e) types and doses of medications remain unchanged in the past month right before participation.
• • Age- and sex-matched healthy controls who filled the criteria (c) and (d) will be recruited from communities.
• Exclusion Criteria:
• • the presence of medical conditions or diseases that may affect hand movements, vision, or hearing based on self-report.