Marusic Uros, Peskar Manca, Šömen Maja Maša, Kalc Miloš, Holobar Ales, Gramann Klaus, Wollesen Bettina, Wunderlich Anna, Michel Christoph, Miladinović Aleksandar, Catalan Mauro, Buoite Stella Alex, Ajcevic Milos, Manganotti Paolo
Science and Research Centre Koper, Institute for Kinesiology Research, Koper, Slovenia.
Department of Health Sciences, Alma Mater Europaea Evropski Center Maribor, Maribor, Slovenia.
Open Res Eur. 2023 Nov 10;3:58. doi: 10.12688/openreseurope.15781.3. eCollection 2023.
Neuromuscular dysfunction is common in older adults and more pronounced in neurodegenerative diseases. In Parkinson's disease (PD), a complex set of factors often prevents the effective performance of activities of daily living that require intact and simultaneous performance of the motor and cognitive tasks.
The cross-sectional study includes a multifactorial mixed-measure design. Between-subject factor grouping the sample will be Parkinson's Disease (early PD vs. healthy). The within-subject factors will be the task complexity (single- vs. dual-task) in each motor activity, i.e., overground walking, semi-tandem stance, and isometric knee extension, and a walking condition (wide vs. narrow lane) will be implemented for the overground walking activity only. To study dual-task (DT) effects, in each motor activity participants will be given a secondary cognitive task, i.e., a visual discrimination task for the overground walking, an attention task for the semi-tandem, and mental arithmetic for the isometric extension. Analyses of DT effects and underlying neuronal correlates will focus on both gait and cognitive performance where applicable. Based on an a priori sample size calculation, a total N = 42 older adults (55-75 years) will be recruited. Disease-specific changes such as laterality in motor unit behavior and cortical control of movement will be studied with high-density surface electromyography and electroencephalography during static and dynamic motor activities, together with whole-body kinematics.
This study will be one of the first to holistically address early PD neurophysiological and neuromuscular patterns in an ecologically valid environment under cognitive-motor DT conditions of different complexities. The outcomes of the study aim to identify the biomarker for early PD either at the electrophysiological, muscular or kinematic level or in the communication between these systems.
ClinicalTrials.Gov, NCT05477654. This study was approved by the Medical Ethical Committee (106/2021).
神经肌肉功能障碍在老年人中很常见，在神经退行性疾病中更为明显。在帕金森病（PD）中，一系列复杂的因素常常妨碍需要完整且同时执行运动和认知任务的日常生活活动的有效进行。
这项横断面研究采用多因素混合测量设计。受试者间因素将样本分为帕金森病组（早期帕金森病与健康对照组）。受试者内因素将是每个运动活动中的任务复杂性（单任务与双任务），即地面行走、半串联站立和等长伸膝，并且仅对地面行走活动设置行走条件（宽通道与窄通道）。为了研究双任务（DT）效应，在每个运动活动中，将给参与者一项次要认知任务，即地面行走的视觉辨别任务、半串联站立的注意力任务和等长伸膝的心算任务。在适用的情况下，对DT效应和潜在神经相关性的分析将聚焦于步态和认知表现。基于预先计算的样本量，将招募总共N = 42名老年人（55 - 75岁）。在静态和动态运动活动期间，将使用高密度表面肌电图和脑电图以及全身运动学来研究运动单位行为的偏侧性和运动的皮质控制等疾病特异性变化。
本研究将是首批在不同复杂性的认知 - 运动双任务条件下，在生态有效环境中全面研究早期帕金森病神经生理和神经肌肉模式的研究之一。该研究的结果旨在确定早期帕金森病在电生理、肌肉或运动学水平或这些系统之间的通信中的生物标志物。
ClinicalTrials.Gov，NCT05477654。本研究已获得医学伦理委员会批准（106/2021）。
