The Effects of Vagus Nerve Stimulation on Intrinsic Lower Leg Spinal Motoneuron Excitability in Parkinson's Disease.
University of Minnesota
Summary
This study is designed to better understand the mechanisms contributing to impaired activation of leg muscles in people with Parkinson's disease (PD) and to test if stimulation of a nerve at the neck can improve muscle activation, walking and balance.
Description
The goals of this project are twofold: (i) to test the hypothesis that persistent inward currents (PICs) in spinal motoneurons of the ankle extensors are reduced in people with Parkinson's disease and that these changes are associated with impaired postural control and (ii) to examine the acute effects of non-invasive vagus nerve stimulation (nVNS) on PICs and postural control. This project will conduct experiments to test the hypothesis that the firing properties of muscles that control the ankle are significantly altered in people with PD compared to matched healthy adults and that these ch…
Eligibility
- Age range
- 21–76 years
- Sex
- All
- Healthy volunteers
- Yes
Inclusion Criteria: * Diagnosis of idiopathic Parkinson's disease, * On stable medication for the preceding month and anticipated over the next 3 months, * Able to ambulate without the use of an assistive device for more than 50 meters. Control Cohort: * Age (± 3 years) and sex distribution matched to the PD cohort, * Able to ambulate without the use of an assistive device for more than 50 meters. Exclusion Criteria: * Failure to demonstrate capacity to consent (based on UBACC and/or MacArthur-CR), * History of significant neurological disorder (besides PD in the PD group), * History of s…
Interventions
- DeviceVagal nerve stimulation
The gammaCore non-invasive vagus nerve stimulator (nVNS) is a hand-held portable device that is used to apply electrical stimulation to the vagus nerve via two electrodes.
- OtherNo intervention
No nVNS is applied in the baseline experiment. Sham nVNS is applied for experiment two
Location
- Movement Disorders LaboratoryMinneapolis, Minnesota