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Completed Not applicable Interventional Results available

Physical Therapy and Deep Brain Stimulation in Parkinson Disease

ClinicalTrials.gov ID: NCT03181282

Public ClinicalTrials.gov record NCT03181282. Field values are reproduced from the official study page; the official ClinicalTrials.gov record remains the source of truth for eligibility, enrollment, and contact information.

ClinicalTrials.gov public records Last synced Sep 3, 2026, 12:10 AM EDT

Data is sourced from official ClinicalTrials.gov public API records. Always review the official ClinicalTrials.gov record for the latest information.

Brief summary

Reproduced verbatim from the official ClinicalTrials.gov record. Not medical advice.

While deep brain stimulation of the subthalamic nucleus (STN-DBS) is commonly used to reduce tremor, muscle stiffness, and bradykinesia in people with Parkinson disease (PD), preliminary studies suggest balance may worsen and falls may increase after STN-DBS. Walking speed, known to be reduced in PD, typically improves after surgery; however, other important gait qualities may not improve. Given the potential for worsening balance and gait and increasing falls after surgery, it is imperative that researchers explore interventions that complement the positive effects of STN-DBS and delay worsening of balance and gait. Physical therapy (PT) is reported to be effective in improving balance and walking in people with PD. However, there have been no studies to investigate how individuals with STN-DBS respond to PT. As such, it is unclear if exercise in the post-DBS population is safe, feasible, and effective. The purpose of this study is to examine the safety, feasibility, and efficacy of PT in people with PD with STN-DBS. The investigators hypothesize that PT will be safe and feasible for people with PD with STN-DBS. Further, the investigators hypothesize that those assigned to PT group will demonstrate improvements in balance and gait while those assigned to the control group will demonstrate no change or a decline in balance and gait.

Study identification

NCT ID
NCT03181282
Recruitment status
Completed
Study type
Interventional
Phase
Not applicable
Enrollment
31 participants

Conditions and interventions

Interventions

Behavioral

Eligibility (public fields only)

Age range
30 Years and older
Sex
All
Healthy volunteers
Healthy volunteers not accepted

This page does not interpret eligibility. Detailed inclusion and exclusion criteria are on the official ClinicalTrials.gov record.

Study timeline

Start date
Aug 2, 2017
Primary completion
Aug 1, 2019
Completion
Aug 1, 2019
Last update posted
Mar 21, 2023

2017 – 2019

United States locations

U.S. sites
1
U.S. states
1
U.S. cities
1
Facility City State ZIP Site status
Washington University in St. Louis School of Medicine - Program in Physical Therapy St Louis Missouri 63108

Site contact phone numbers, emails, and investigator names are intentionally not displayed here. Open the official ClinicalTrials.gov record for site contact information.

About this trial record page

What this page shows
Public field values for ClinicalTrials.gov record NCT03181282, including study identification, conditions, interventions, eligibility (age, sex, healthy volunteer), timeline, and U.S. site list.
What this page does not do
No medical advice, eligibility judgments, treatment recommendations, study quality scoring, or AI-generated medical summaries. No site contact phone numbers, emails, or investigator names.
Where the data comes from
Sourced from the official ClinicalTrials.gov public API. The official record is the source of truth.
Last refresh
Last update posted Mar 21, 2023 · Synced Sep 3, 2026

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Open the official record

The complete protocol, eligibility criteria, and contact information for NCT03181282 live on ClinicalTrials.gov.

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