NCT05735691

Brief Summary

The goal of this clinical trial is to improve walking speed, balance, and walking in the community for people with multiple sclerosis. This trial involves intense exercise combined with walking on a shaky treadmill. Walking on a shaky treadmill helps to practice balance and intense exercise promotes the ability to walk faster and farther. In this study, participants will train with a combination of high or low intensity, and with a stable or shaky treadmill. Walking speed and endurance, balance while walking and the number of steps taken in the community will be measured before, half way through the training (15 sessions), after training (30 sessions) and six months after training.

Trial Health

77
On Track

Trial Health Score

Automated assessment based on enrollment pace, timeline, and geographic reach

Enrollment
150

participants targeted

Target at P75+ for not_applicable multiple-sclerosis

Timeline
14mo left

Started Jan 2023

Longer than P75 for not_applicable multiple-sclerosis

Geographic Reach
1 country

2 active sites

Status
recruiting

Health score is calculated from publicly available data and should be used for screening purposes only.

Trial Relationships

Click on a node to explore related trials.

Study Timeline

Key milestones and dates

Study Progress75%
Jan 2023Jun 2027

Study Start

First participant enrolled

January 1, 2023

Completed
10 days until next milestone

First Submitted

Initial submission to the registry

January 11, 2023

Completed
1 month until next milestone

First Posted

Study publicly available on registry

February 21, 2023

Completed
4.4 years until next milestone

Primary Completion

Last participant's last visit for primary outcome

June 30, 2027

Expected
Same day until next milestone

Study Completion

Last participant's last visit for all outcomes

June 30, 2027

Last Updated

June 5, 2024

Status Verified

June 1, 2024

Enrollment Period

4.5 years

First QC Date

January 11, 2023

Last Update Submit

June 3, 2024

Conditions

Keywords

WalkingBalanceTreadmillExercise

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (4)

  • Changes in Timed 25-foot walk test

    Gait speed will be measured using the timed 25-foot walk test. The test consists of walking 25 feet along a clearly marked walkway as quickly as possible while maintaining safety, using devices as needed. The task is repeated as the patient walks back the same distance. The average of the two trials is used as a measure of gait speed.

    Before training, 5-6 weeks after training begins, 1-2 weeks after all training sessions, 6 months after all training sessions

  • Changes in 6-minute walk test

    The 6 minute walk test consists of a measurement of the distance walked in 6 minutes, using a walkway of at least 12 meters, with cones demarcating the turnaround points and instructions to walk as fast and as far as possible.

    Before training, 5-6 weeks after training begins, 1-2 weeks after all training sessions, 6 months after all training sessions

  • Changes in Functional Gait Assessment (FGA)

    The FGA measures dynamic balance during walking using a series of 10 tasks, with each item rated on a scale of 0-3 (maximum score = 30). Test components include walking on a level surface at normal pace with changes in gait speed, head turns, obstacle and narrow path negotiation, and on stairs.

    Before training, 5-6 weeks after training begins, 1-2 weeks after all training sessions, 6 months after all training sessions

  • Changes in Daily stepping activity

    Daily stepping activity will be obtained using the StepWatch (Modus, Washington DC), which is an ankle-worn accelerometer that has demonstrated the best accuracy of all commercial accelerometers. Data are collected in 1 min increments with daily stepping activity as the primary variable. Data will be collected for 7 days at each evaluation period.

    Before training, 1-2 weeks after all training sessions, 6 months after all training sessions

Secondary Outcomes (9)

  • Changes in Peak treadmill speed and cardiorespiratory fitness

    Before training, 5-6 weeks after training begins, 1-2 weeks after all training sessions, 6 months after all training sessions

  • Changes in Berg Balance Scale

    Before training, 5-6 weeks after training begins, 1-2 weeks after all training sessions, 6 months after all training sessions

  • Changes in Falls incidence

    Before training, 5-6 weeks after training begins, 1-2 weeks after all training sessions, 6 months after all training sessions

  • Changes in Kinematic Response to unexpected perturbations

    Before training, 5-6 weeks after training begins, 1-2 weeks after all training sessions, 6 months after all training sessions

  • Changes in Activities-specific Balance Confidence (ABC) score

    Before training, 5-6 weeks after training begins, 1-2 weeks after all training sessions, 6 months after all training sessions

  • +4 more secondary outcomes

Study Arms (4)

High-Intensity With Pertubations

EXPERIMENTAL

30 sessions of high-intensity treadmill training will be conducted. Perturbations that disrupt balance will be applied during the training.

Procedure: High-Intensity Treadmill TrainingProcedure: Treadmill Training with Perturbations

High-Intensity No Perturbations

EXPERIMENTAL

30 sessions of high-intensity treadmill training will be conducted on a stable treadmill.

Procedure: High-Intensity Treadmill Training

Moderate-Intensity With Perturbations

EXPERIMENTAL

30 sessions of moderate-intensity treadmill training will be conducted. Perturbations that disrupt balance will be applied during the training.

Procedure: Treadmill Training with PerturbationsProcedure: Standard Treadmill Training

Moderate-Intensity No Perturbations

ACTIVE COMPARATOR

30 sessions of moderate-intensity treadmill training will be conducted on a stable treadmill.

Procedure: Standard Treadmill Training

Interventions

Participants will walk on a treadmill at a speed that produces 70-80% of age-adjusted heart rate reserve or a rating of perceived exertion of 17/20. A total of 30, one hour sessions will be conducted. Training will be conducted in 10 minute bouts, with 2-3 minutes rest between bouts.

High-Intensity No PerturbationsHigh-Intensity With Pertubations

Participants will walk on a treadmill and a perturbation of the treadmill will be produced every 20s. Perturbations will randomly occur in the forward, backward, right or left directions, with a perturbation size set to 80% of stability threshold. A total of 30, one hour sessions will be conducted. Training will be conducted in 10 minute bouts with 2-3 minutes rest between bouts.

High-Intensity With PertubationsModerate-Intensity With Perturbations

Participants will walk on a treadmill at a speed that produces 30-40% of age-adjusted heart rate reserve. A total of 30, one hour sessions will be conducted. Training will be conducted in 10 minute bouts, with 2-3 minutes rest between bouts.

Moderate-Intensity No PerturbationsModerate-Intensity With Perturbations

Eligibility Criteria

Age18 Years - 75 Years
Sexall
Healthy VolunteersNo
Age GroupsAdult (18-64), Older Adult (65+)

You may qualify if:

  • Participants must have a clinical diagnosis of MS according to the revised McDonald Criteria. Participants with an EDSS score of 2.0-6.5 will be included but must have a stable disease course without worsening more than 1.0 EDSS point over the last 3 months and no MS exacerbation within the preceding 4 weeks, as determined by interview and review of medical records.
  • Participants will have stable MS disease treatments. All medications will be consistent for at least 1 month prior to enrollment. No corticosteroids for at least 1 month and no botulinum toxin injections above the knee for at least 3 months prior to enrollment.
  • Participants will be between the age of 18 and 65 and have a body mass of less than 135kg (maximum mass for treadmill equipment).
  • Participants will be able to follow three commands, as determined by the three step command test of the Mini Mental State Exam.
  • Participants must have had no myocardial infarction in the past month, must not have uncontrolled hypertension (blood pressure must be \< 190/110 mmHg at rest), must not have a symptomatic fall in blood pressure when standing and must not have documented, uncontrolled diabetes.
  • Participants will be medically stable, with absence of concurrent severe medical illness including: existing infection, known significant cardiovascular or metabolic disease that limits exercise participation, significant osteoporosis (as indicated by known history of fractures), known history of vascular claudication or pitting edema, and known history of pulmonary complications that limits exercise capacity, including significant obstructive and/or restrictive lung diseases.
  • All participants must be able to perform walking training with passive range of motion within the limits of normal locomotor function, including: 0-30 +/- 10 degrees ankle plantarflexion, knee flexion from 0 to 90 +/- 10 degrees, hip flexion to 0-90 +/- 10 degrees.
  • Individuals who are undergoing concurrent physical therapy or supervised exercise by a trained professional will be excluded from the study to eliminate confounding effects of additional physical interventions. Other therapies, such as occupational or speech therapies, will be allowed as prescribed by their physician. Individuals will be allowed and encouraged to continue their normal exercise routines during the course of the intervention.
  • Participants must have no other concomitant neurological diseases, no history of epileptic seizures, peripheral nerve injury in lower legs or traumatic brain injury.
  • Participants must have adequate hearing (whisper test) and vision (minimum 20/80 corrected vision on a Snellen chart).
  • Participants must be able to walk for 10 meters at their preferred walking speed. For participants that require assistive devices to walk overground, minimal assistance will be provided to enable training until participants recover enough that they are not needed. The use of braces or orthoses is allowed in the proposed study to assure orthopedic safety. Participants will be excluded if they have factors that preclude stepping exercise, such as severe spasticity, excessive fatigue or exercise intolerance.
  • Women of childbearing potential will not be excluded, although women who are pregnant or who are considering becoming pregnant will be excluded due to the trunk and pelvis restraints required for safety during treadmill training.
  • Participants must be willing to commit to the treadmill training program schedule and participate in all of the assessments. They must be able to provide informed written consent and willing to be randomized to any of the 4 study arms.

Contact the study team to confirm eligibility.

Sponsors & Collaborators

Study Sites (2)

Rehabilitation Hospital of Indiana

Indianapolis, Indiana, 46254, United States

RECRUITING

Marquette University

Milwaukee, Wisconsin, 53233, United States

RECRUITING

MeSH Terms

Conditions

Multiple SclerosisMotor Activity

Condition Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Demyelinating Autoimmune Diseases, CNSAutoimmune Diseases of the Nervous SystemNervous System DiseasesDemyelinating DiseasesAutoimmune DiseasesImmune System DiseasesBehavior

Study Officials

  • Brian D Schmit, PhD

    Marquette University

    PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR

Central Study Contacts

Brian D Schmit, PhD

CONTACT

Study Design

Study Type
interventional
Phase
not applicable
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Masking
TRIPLE
Who Masked
CARE PROVIDER, INVESTIGATOR, OUTCOMES ASSESSOR
Masking Details
Assessment will be done by a separate team from the trainers. The participant cannot be blinded as they will recognize the intensity of the exercise and whether the treadmill moves.
Purpose
TREATMENT
Intervention Model
FACTORIAL
Model Details: A 2x2 factorial design will be used. One factor will consist of high intensity vs moderate intensity. The second factor will be walking perturbations vs no perturbations.
Sponsor Type
OTHER
Responsible Party
SPONSOR

Study Record Dates

First Submitted

January 11, 2023

First Posted

February 21, 2023

Study Start

January 1, 2023

Primary Completion (Estimated)

June 30, 2027

Study Completion (Estimated)

June 30, 2027

Last Updated

June 5, 2024

Record last verified: 2024-06

Data Sharing

IPD Sharing
Will share

The investigators will share phenotypic data associated with the collected samples by depositing data at clinicaltrials.gov. Additional data documentation and de-identified data will be deposited for sharing along with phenotypic data. Meta-analysis data and associated phenotypic data, along with data content, format, and organization, will be available via contact of the PI (brian.schmit@marquette.edu). We will identify where the data will be available and how to access the data in any publications and presentations that we author or co-author about these data, as well as acknowledge the repository and funding source in any publications and presentations.

Time Frame
The investigators will deposit phenotypic outcome data into clinicaltrials.gov, as soon as possible but no later than within one year of the completion of the funded project period for the parent award or upon acceptance of the data for publication, or public disclosure of a submitted patent application, whichever is earlier.
Access Criteria
Data will be shared through clinicaltrials.gov with investigators working under an institution with a Federal Wide Assurance (FWA) and could be used for secondary study purposes.

Locations