TAME-PD - Physical Therapy, Atomoxetine and, Methylphenidate, to Enhance Gait and Balance in Parkinson's Disease

Summary

Gait and balance problems are a significant source of disability in patients with Parkinson disease. Physical therapy remains one of the main treatments. On the other hand some medications, such as methyphenidate and atomoxetine, have been tried with promising results. The outcomes in gait and balance in Parkinson disease after a combination of physical therapy and the medications mentioned above have not been explored yet. The investigators want to evaluate whether the addition of medication, either low dose of methylphenidate or atomoxetine, to physical therapy will achieve improvement in gait and balance in Parkinson disease more than physical therapy alone. The investigators propose a pilot, single center, rater blind, prospective randomized trial. 2-arm-parallel group, intention-to-treat analysis.

Timeline

Start

2017-01-03

Primary completion

2025-12-12

Completion

2025-12-12

Publications

• Background Boonstra TA, van der Kooij H, Munneke M, Bloem BR. Gait disorders and balance disturbances in Parkinson's disease: clinical update and pathophysiology. Curr Opin Neurol. 2008 Aug;21(4):461-71. doi: 10.1097/WCO.0b013e328305bdaf.
• Background Williams DR, Watt HC, Lees AJ. Predictors of falls and fractures in bradykinetic rigid syndromes: a retrospective study. J Neurol Neurosurg Psychiatry. 2006 Apr;77(4):468-73. doi: 10.1136/jnnp.2005.074070.
• Background Moreau C, Cantiniaux S, Delval A, Defebvre L, Azulay JP. [Gait disorders in Parkinson's disease: and pathophysiological approaches]. Rev Neurol (Paris). 2010 Feb;166(2):158-67. doi: 10.1016/j.neurol.2009.05.010. Epub 2009 Jul 18. French.
• Background Wielinski CL, Erickson-Davis C, Wichmann R, Walde-Douglas M, Parashos SA. Falls and injuries resulting from falls among patients with Parkinson's disease and other parkinsonian syndromes. Mov Disord. 2005 Apr;20(4):410-415. doi: 10.1002/mds.20347.
• Background Collomb-Clerc A, Welter ML. Effects of deep brain stimulation on balance and gait in patients with Parkinson's disease: A systematic neurophysiological review. Neurophysiol Clin. 2015 Nov;45(4-5):371-88. doi: 10.1016/j.neucli.2015.07.001. Epub 2015 Aug 28.
• Background Nutt JG, Horak FB, Bloem BR. Milestones in gait, balance, and falling. Mov Disord. 2011 May;26(6):1166-74. doi: 10.1002/mds.23588.
• Background Auriel E, Hausdorff JM, Herman T, Simon ES, Giladi N. Effects of methylphenidate on cognitive function and gait in patients with Parkinson's disease: a pilot study. Clin Neuropharmacol. 2006 Jan-Feb;29(1):15-7. doi: 10.1097/00002826-200601000-00005.
• Background Pollak L, Dobronevsky Y, Prohorov T, Bahunker S, Rabey JM. Low dose methylphenidate improves freezing in advanced Parkinson's disease during off-state. J Neural Transm Suppl. 2007;(72):145-8. doi: 10.1007/978-3-211-73574-9_17.
• Background Devos D, Krystkowiak P, Clement F, Dujardin K, Cottencin O, Waucquier N, Ajebbar K, Thielemans B, Kroumova M, Duhamel A, Destee A, Bordet R, Defebvre L. Improvement of gait by chronic, high doses of methylphenidate in patients with advanced Parkinson's disease. J Neurol Neurosurg Psychiatry. 2007 May;78(5):470-5. doi: 10.1136/jnnp.2006.100016. Epub 2006 Nov 10.
• Background Espay AJ, Dwivedi AK, Payne M, Gaines L, Vaughan JE, Maddux BN, Slevin JT, Gartner M, Sahay A, Revilla FJ, Duker AP, Shukla R. Methylphenidate for gait impairment in Parkinson disease: a randomized clinical trial. Neurology. 2011 Apr 5;76(14):1256-62. doi: 10.1212/WNL.0b013e3182143537.
• Background Mendonca DA, Menezes K, Jog MS. Methylphenidate improves fatigue scores in Parkinson disease: a randomized controlled trial. Mov Disord. 2007 Oct 31;22(14):2070-6. doi: 10.1002/mds.21656.
• Background Jankovic J. Atomoxetine for freezing of gait in Parkinson disease. J Neurol Sci. 2009 Sep 15;284(1-2):177-8. doi: 10.1016/j.jns.2009.03.022. Epub 2009 Apr 9.
• Background Mirelman A, Maidan I, Deutsch JE. Virtual reality and motor imagery: promising tools for assessment and therapy in Parkinson's disease. Mov Disord. 2013 Sep 15;28(11):1597-608. doi: 10.1002/mds.25670.
• Background Gisbert R, Schenkman M. Physical therapist interventions for Parkinson disease. Phys Ther. 2015 Mar;95(3):299-305. doi: 10.2522/ptj.20130334. Epub 2014 Nov 25. No abstract available.
• Background Tomlinson CL, Patel S, Meek C, Clarke CE, Stowe R, Shah L, Sackley CM, Deane KH, Herd CP, Wheatley K, Ives N. Physiotherapy versus placebo or no intervention in Parkinson's disease. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2012 Jul 11;(7):CD002817. doi: 10.1002/14651858.CD002817.pub2.
• Background Thomas M, Jankovic J, Suteerawattananon M, Wankadia S, Caroline KS, Vuong KD, Protas E. Clinical gait and balance scale (GABS): validation and utilization. J Neurol Sci. 2004 Jan 15;217(1):89-99. doi: 10.1016/j.jns.2003.09.005.
• Background Williams JR, Hirsch ES, Anderson K, Bush AL, Goldstein SR, Grill S, Lehmann S, Little JT, Margolis RL, Palanci J, Pontone G, Weiss H, Rabins P, Marsh L. A comparison of nine scales to detect depression in Parkinson disease: which scale to use? Neurology. 2012 Mar 27;78(13):998-1006. doi: 10.1212/WNL.0b013e31824d587f. Epub 2012 Mar 14.
• Background Leentjens AF, Dujardin K, Pontone GM, Starkstein SE, Weintraub D, Martinez-Martin P. The Parkinson Anxiety Scale (PAS): development and validation of a new anxiety scale. Mov Disord. 2014 Jul;29(8):1035-43. doi: 10.1002/mds.25919. Epub 2014 May 23.

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