NCT04187391

The Effects of a Multimodal Approach for the Treatment of PPA

The Effects of a Multimodal Approach for the Treatment of Primary Progressive Aphasia

• Status: Completed
• Phase: N/A
• Study type: Interventional
• Enrollment: 47 (actual)
• Sponsor: IRCCS Centro San Giovanni di Dio Fatebenefratelli · Academic / Other
• Sex: All
• Age: 40 Years – 95 Years
• Healthy volunteers: Not accepted

Summary

Primary Progressive Aphasia (PPA) is an untreatable neurodegenerative disorder that disrupts language functions. Available therapies are mainly symptomatic and recently attention has been gained by new techniques that allow for noninvasive brain stimulation such as transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS). The primary objective of this study is to evaluate whether the application of Active tDCS (anode over the left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex- DLPFC with the cathode over the right supraorbital region) to the scalp during individualized language training, would improve naming abilities in the agrammatic variant of PPA (avPPA) more than use of one methodology alone. The effect of treatment on the clinical symptoms will be related to changes in brain activity (Magnetic Resonance Imaging, MRI and Functional near-infrared spectroscopy fNIRS) and in biological markers, using a multimodal approach. Finally, we will assess the long-term effects of this approach.

Detailed description

45 patients with avPPA, will be recruited from IRCCS Istituto Centro San Giovanni di Dio Brescia, Italy and ASST Spedali Civili Brescia, Italy . Inclusion criteria will be a diagnosis avPPA according to the current clinical criteria (Gorno-Tempini et al., 2011) and a FTD Clinical Dementia Rating score \>0.5 and \<2. Exclusion criteria will be the presence of any medical or psychiatric illness that could interfere in completing assessments and the presence of any medical condition that represents a contraindication to tDCS. All the patients will undergo five consecutive days a week for two weeks of treatment sessions: 15 patients will receive Active tDCS over DLPFC while performing a language training; 15 patients will receive placebo tDCS during language training; 15 patients will receive Active tDCS over DLPFC during unstructured cognitive training. Two trained neuropsychologists will administer the neuropsychological testing in two sessions. At baseline (T0), post-treatment (T1) and 3-months (T2) follow-up assessments were conducted by the same assessor. Blood sample withdrawal at baseline (T0) and after the DLPFC-tDCS intervention (T1) will be assessed. To elucidate the mechanisms underlying tDCS effects, structural imaging, functional connectivity (fMRI) alterations and concentration changes of hemoglobin (fNIRS) will be collected off-line. Each avPPA patient will undergo an MRI scan at the ASST Spedali Civili Brescia, Italy at T0 and T1 and a fNIRS acquisition at the IRCCS Istituto Centro San Giovanni di Dio Brescia, Italy at T0, T1 and T2.

Conditions

• Primary Progressive Aphasia

Interventions

Type	Name	Description
DEVICE	Active tDCS	Active tDCS anode is applied over the left DLPFC with the cathode over the right supraorbital region.
DEVICE	Placebo tDCS	Placebo tDCS is applied but the current is turned off 10 seconds after the beginning and turned on for the last 10 seconds of the stimulation period.
BEHAVIORAL	Language training	patients receive language training
BEHAVIORAL	Unstructured cognitive training	patients receive unstructured cognitive training.

Timeline

• Start date: 2020-01-15
• Primary completion: 2024-03-31
• Completion: 2024-03-31
• First posted: 2019-12-05
• Last updated: 2024-10-03

Locations

1 site across 1 country: Italy