Study of Sensory Attenuation in Functional Movement Disorders

NCT06872788 | Not Yet Recruiting

• 1 other identifier: 126375
• Study Type: observational
• Target: 70
• Locations: 1 country
• Sites: 1

Brief Summary

Functional movement disorders (FMD) are conditions where people experience unusual movements or difficulties with walking, not caused by a specific brain or nerve injury but related to how the brain controls movements. Functional movement disorders are common in clinical practice and can lead to significant disability and healthcare costs. A key feature of FMD is a problem with self-agency-the feeling that we are in control of our own movements. Many patients with FMD feel that their abnormal movements happen without their control. Sensory attenuation is closely linked to self-agency. It's the brain's way of reducing the intensity of sensations caused by our own movements. For example, you can't tickle yourself because your brain knows it's your own action. In people with FMD, this process doesn't work properly. As a result, they might feel their movements are involuntary. Previous research shows that sensory attenuation is reduced in FMD, but the studies so far have been small. This study will investigate sensory attenuation in a larger group of FMD patients and compare it with healthy individuals. The goal is to see if reduced sensory attenuation could be used as a marker to measure the severity of FMD.

Conditions

Functional Movement Disorder

Keywords

functional movement disorder; sensory attenuation; sense of agency

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (1)

• Sensory attenuation measurement

  The primary outcome of this study is to measure sensory attenuation in patients with functional movement disorders (FMD) using the force-matching paradigm. Sensory attenuation will be quantified by calculating the ratio of matched forces to target forces in both self and external conditions.

  Day 1

Secondary Outcomes (1)

• Correlation between WHODAS2 and PMDS with sensory attenuation.

  Day 1

Study Arms (2)

Cases

Functional Movement Disorder

Controls

Healthy subjects

Eligibility Criteria

• Age: 18 Years+
• Sex: all
• Healthy Volunteers: Yes
• Age Groups: Adult (18-64), Older Adult (65+)
• Sampling Method: Non-Probability Sample

Study Population

movement disorder clinic

You may qualify if:

• (1) Diagnosed with a functional movement disorder (2) Age \>18 years

You may not qualify if:

• (1) Moderate to severe action tremor in the dominant hand that interferes with the tasks. (2) Upper limb peripheral neuropathy. (3) Inability to read or understand English.

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Western University, Canada: lead

Study Sites (1)

University Hospital

London, Ontario, N6A5A5, Canada

Location

MeSH Terms

Conditions

Conversion Disorder

Condition Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Somatoform Disorders; Mental Disorders

Central Study Contacts

Aditya Murgai, MBBS MD DM

CONTACT

+15196633121; aditya.murgai@lhsc.on.ca

Study Design

• Study Type: observational
• Observational Model: CASE CONTROL
• Time Perspective: CROSS SECTIONAL
• Sponsor Type: OTHER
• Responsible Party: PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR
• PI Title: Assistant Professot

Study Record Dates

• First Submitted: March 2, 2025
• First Posted: March 12, 2025
• Study Start: September 1, 2025
• Primary Completion (Estimated): September 1, 2028
• Study Completion (Estimated): December 1, 2028
• Last Updated: March 12, 2025

Record last verified: 2025-03

Data Sharing

• IPD Sharing: Will not share

Locations

CA (1)