Study Rationale: Turning is a critical aspect of mobility for people with PD that, in some individuals, can precipitate freezing of gait. We recently developed a turn-specific intervention for people with PD, and preliminary data indicate it may improve mobility, and specifically turning, during activities of daily life. However, whether this intervention can positively impact freezing of gait is unknown. Given the difficulty that people with PD and freezing exhibit with turning, we seek to examine the effect of a turn-specific physical rehabilitation intervention on freezing severity.
Hypothesis: We hypothesize that 6-weeks of turning-specific physical rehabilitation will reduce the actual and perceived severity of freezing both in the lab and in daily life in people with PD.
Study Design: We will conduct a pre-phase I, multi-site, blinded, randomized clinical trial to establish the preliminary efficacy of a turn-specific physical rehabilitation protocol (TURN-IT) on observed and perceived freezing severity. We will also assess daily-life mobility to increase relevance of findings to in-home ability.
Impact on Diagnosis/Treatment of Parkinson’s Disease: Freezing of gait is a life-altering symptom of PD that leads to reduced quality of life and injury. Current pharmacological, rehabilitative, and compensatory strategies are incompletely effective at treating this symptom. Identification of novel rehabilitative interventions to reduce the impact of freezing of gait are urgently needed.
Next Steps for Development: If we observe improvements in freezing of gait in response to the “TURN-IT” intervention, we will conduct a Phase II, randomized clinical trial to establish effectiveness of this intervention to improve freezing in people with PD who freeze.
Trial Phase: Pre-phase I