View clinical trials related to Cervical Dystonia.
Filter by:This study will examine the prevalence of four previously identified non-motor markers in a population of cervical dystonia patients, unaffected family members, and healthy volunteers in an attempt to identify a distinct combination of non-motor symptoms that may be indicative of disease development.
Background: Essential tremor is when a person has tremor, but no other neurological symptoms. Dystonic tremor is when a person also has dystonia. Dystonia is a condition in which muscle contraction causes changes in posture. Researchers do not fully know what areas of the brain cause these tremors, or how the types differ. They also do not know what tests can identify the differences. Objective: To look at differences between essential tremor and dystonic tremor. Eligibility: People ages 18 and older with or without tremor Design: Participants will be screened with medical history, physical exam, and urine tests. Those with tremor will complete questionnaires about how tremor affects them. The screening and study visits can be done on the same day or on separate days. Participants will have 1 or 2 study visits. These include magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and tremor testing. For MRI, participants will lie on a table that slides in and out of a cylinder that takes pictures. Sensors on the skin measure breathing, heart rate, and muscle activity. This takes about 2 hours. Tremor testing will include transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS), electrical stimulation of the fingers, doing a movement task, and recording of tremor movements. For TMS, two wire coils will be held on the scalp and a brief magnetic field will be produced. A brief electrical current will pass through the coils. For the other tests, small sticky pad electrodes will be put on the skin. Participants will move their hand when they hear a sound. They will get weak electrical shocks to their fingers. These tests will take 3-4 hours. Participants can take part in either or both parts of the study.
To address joint position sense in cervical dystonia patients and how it affects the brain activity.
The purpose of this study is to compare the cervical muscular force control , taking into account the proprioceptive signals, in patients with and without cervical dystonia.
Background: Dystonia is a movement disorder in which a person s muscles contract on their own. This causes different parts of the body to twist or turn. The cause of this movement is unknown. Researchers think it may have to do with a chemical called acetylcholine. They want to learn more about why acetylcholine in the brain doesn t work properly in people with dystonia. Objective: To better understand how certain parts of the brain take up acetylcholine in people with dystonia. Eligibility: Adults at least 18 years old who have DYT1 dystonia or cervical dystonia. Healthy adult volunteers. Design: Participants will be screened with a medical history, physical exam, and pregnancy test. Study visit 1: Participants will have a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scan of the brain. The MRI scanner is a metal cylinder in a strong magnetic field that takes pictures of the brain. Participants will lie on a table that slides in and out of the cylinder. Study visit 2: Participants will have a positron emission tomography (PET) scan. The PET scanner is shaped like a doughnut. Participants will lie on a bed that slides in and out of the scanner. A small amount of a radioactive chemical that can be detected by the PET scanner will be given through an IV line to measure how the brain takes up acetylcholine. ...
This study investigates the use of a kinematic measurement device to quantify the abnormal head movements and postures in patients with cervical dystonia (CD) in order to individualize and optimize botulinum toxin type A (BoNT-A) injection therapy. A single sensor captures five degrees of freedom of the neck and head that distinguish which muscle(s) contribute to CD and the amount of BoNT-A to inject into these muscle(s). The efficacy, relief and improvements in social, occupation and function by injections will be investigated. The efficacy of BoNT-A therapy using either BoNT-A injection parameters from clinical-based assessments and kinematically-based assessments will be investigated in CD patients. Individuals clinically diagnosed with CD will be randomized for two treatment conditions: A) injection parameters from a kinematic assessment only, or B) injection parameters from a clinical assessment only.
Background: - People with dystonia have muscle contractions they can t control. These cause slow, repeated motions or abnormal postures. People with dystonia have abnormalities in certain parts of the brain. Researchers want to study the activity of two different brain areas in people with writer s cramp and cervical dystonia. Objective: - To compare brain activity in people with dystonia to that in healthy people. Eligibility: - Right-handed people ages of 18-65 with cervical dystonia or writer s cramp. - Healthy volunteers the same ages. Design: - Participants will be screened with a physical exam. They will answer questions about being right- or left-handed. - At study visit 1, participants will:<TAB> - Have a neurological exam. - Answer questions about how their disease impacts their daily activities. - Have a structural magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scan. Participants will lie on a table that can slide <TAB>in and out of a metal cylinder. This is surrounded by a strong magnetic field. - Do 2 simple computer tasks. - At study visit 2: - Participants will have transcranial magnetic stimulations (TMS) at 2 places on the head. Two wire coils will be held on the scalp. A brief electrical current creates a magnetic pulse that affects brain activity. Muscles of the face, arm, or leg might twitch. Participants may have to tense certain muscles or do simple tasks during TMS. They may be asked to rate any discomfort caused by TMS. - Muscle activity in the right hand will be recorded by electrodes stuck to the skin of that hand.
Deep brain stimulation (DBS) is an effective surgical therapy for select Dystonia patients who are refractory to medications or who have generalized symptoms (e.g. patients with Early-Onset Primary Dystonia(DYT1) mutations and other dystonia subtypes). DBS patients typically experience significant improvement in disabling symptoms; however, detailed programming is always required, and stimulation-induced side effects commonly emerge. Clinicians may empirically vary voltage, pulse width, frequency and also the active contacts on the DBS lead to achieve observed optimal benefits. The majority of DBS patients undergo repeat surgeries to replace the implantable pulse generator (IPG) every 2.5 to 5 years. It has been demonstrated that, in dystonia patients, that higher settings are required for adequate symptomatic control, and that neurostimulators have a considerably shorter life when compared to neurostimulators from patients with essential tremor or Parkinson's disease. Additionally, several smaller studies have suggested that alternative pulse stimulation properties and pulse shape modifications can lower IPG battery consumption. Newer patterns of stimulation (regularity of pulses and shapes of pulses) have not been widely tested in clinical practice, and are not part of the current FDA device labeling. Novel patterns of stimulation do however, have the potential to improve symptoms, reduce side effects, and to preserve the neurostimulator life. The current research proposal will prospectively study biphasic pulse stimulation paradigms and its effects on dystonic symptoms. The investigators aim to demonstrate that we can tailor DBS settings to address dystonia symptoms, improve the safety profile, characterize distinct clinical advantages, and carefully document the safety and neurostimulator battery consumption profile for biphasic stimulation.
The purpose of the proposed research is to determine if Osteopathic manipulative medicine (OMM) used alone or in combination with the standard treatment of botulinum toxin intramuscular injections improves motor function and quality of life amongst people with cervical (neck) dystonia.
This study is a retrospective chart review to evaluate the doses of botulinum Type A toxins BOTOX® (onabotulinumtoxinA) and Xeomin® (incobotulinumtoxinA) used for the treatment of Cervical Dystonia and Blepharospasm in clinical practice.