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Repetitive Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation for Apathy in Alzheimer's Dementia

NCT02190084 · Status: COMPLETED · Phase: PHASE4 · Type: INTERVENTIONAL · Enrollment: 20

Last updated 2019-08-21

No results posted yet for this study

Summary

Alzheimer's Dementia (AD) is a major public health problem. Apathy, a profound loss of motivation, is seen in majority of patients with AD. Dysfunction of the front of the brain and loss of dopamine, a type of neurochemical, in this part of brain results in apathy. Presence of apathy is linked to deficits in planning sequential tasks such as keeping a routine. Patients with apathy have poor physical function and their caregivers experience extra burden. Unfortunately there are no good medications to treat apathy. FDA has approved the use of brain stimulation by a magnet known as repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS), for treatment of depression. rTMS increases dopamine when applied to frontal lobe of brain so we propose that rTMS would be a good treatment option for apathy in AD. Study hypotheses include that rTMS to the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) will improve apathy and executive function better than sham treatment in those with AD.

Conditions

  • Apathy
  • Alzheimer's Dementia

Interventions

DEVICE

Neurostar repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulator

The active procedure will stimulate at 120% motor threshold for 4 seconds at a frequency of 10 Hz, with an inter-train interval of 26 seconds for a total of 3,000 pulses. 20 treatment sessions are given over a four week period.

Sponsors & Collaborators

  • Central Arkansas Veterans Healthcare System

    lead FED

Study Design

Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Purpose
TREATMENT
Masking
QUADRUPLE
Model
PARALLEL

Eligibility

Min Age
55 Years
Max Age
91 Years
Sex
ALL
Healthy Volunteers
No

Timeline & Regulatory

Start
2014-05-31
Primary Completion
2019-05-31
Completion
2019-07-31

Countries

  • United States

Study Locations

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Read the full study record

This page highlights key information. For complete eligibility criteria, study locations, investigator contacts, and the full protocol, visit the original record on ClinicalTrials.gov.

View NCT02190084 on ClinicalTrials.gov