Treadmill, Stretching and Proprioceptive Exercise (TreSPE) Rehabilitation Program for Charcot-Marie-Tooth Neuropathy Type 1A (CMT1A)

Summary

Charcot-Marie-Tooth neuropathy type 1A (CMT1A) is one of the most common inherited neurological disorders. The study will evaluate the efficacy and safety of an innovative rehabilitation protocol constituted by exercises at the treadmill and by a stretching and proprioceptive approach. A total of 92 patients will be enrolled in the study and treated in a controlled, randomized, single blind, way. To recruit a high number of patients with CMT1A the study will be multicentric and will comprehend four of the most active clinical centers in the field of CMT, in Italy. People with CMT1A are very motivated in entering rehabilitation protocols because to date there is no effective therapy for this disease. Therefore, the investigators expect a high compliance by the patients. With the present project the investigators plan to clarify several unanswered questions: 1) the efficacy and safety of treadmill over a more conventional protocol; 2) the duration and frequency of any rehabilitation treatment; 3) the most sensitive outcome measures to evaluate the efficacy of rehabilitation approach in patients with CMT.

Conditions

• Charcot-Marie-Tooth Disease
• Charcot-Marie-Tooth Disease Type 1A

Interventions

OTHER

TreSPE

1. treadmill: 5'warm up, 20'aerobic exercise (gradually incremented to 30', from session to session, if possible), 5'warm down, controlling hearth rate, blood pressure and SaO2. 2. Respiratory Physiotherapy: positive Expiratory Pressure (PEP) bottle for 10' (in various postures), and postural training, for the other 10'. 3. Stretching for 20', of the triceps surae, tibialis posterior, extensor and flexors digitorum longus and brevis, both at the bed and in a static position. 4. Proprioceptive and postural kinesitherapy according to the Perfetti method. 5. Balance Exercising consists of exercises carried on by basculating bars with improving difficulties in the instruments utilized and in the tasks with therapist supervision and near a handbar preventing falls.

OTHER

SPE

1. Respiratory Physiotherapy for 20', consisting of Positive Expiratory Pressure (PEP) bottle for 10' (in various postures), and postural training according to the Mèzières technique, for the other 10'. 2. Stretching for 20', of the triceps surae, tibialis posterior, extensor and flexors longus and brevis, both at the bed and in a static position. 3. Proprioceptive and postural kinesitherapy according to the neurocognitive method. 4. Balance Exercising consists of exercises carried on by moving bars with improving difficulties in the instruments utilized and in the tasks with therapist supervision and near a handlebar preventing falls.

Sponsors & Collaborators

• University of Genova

  lead OTHER

Principal Investigators

• Angelo E Schenone, MD · University of Genova

Study Design

Allocation

RANDOMIZED

Purpose

TREATMENT

Masking

SINGLE

Model

PARALLEL

Eligibility

Min Age

18 Years

Max Age

70 Years

Sex

ALL

Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Timeline & Regulatory

Start

2011-02-28

Primary Completion

2011-10-31

Completion

2012-01-31

Countries

• Italy

Study Locations