Home-based EXergames To impRove cognitivE Function in MUltiple Sclerosis

NCT ID: NCT04169750

Last Updated: 2021-10-01

Study Results

Results pending

The study team has not published outcome measurements, participant flow, or safety data for this trial yet. Check back later for updates.

Basic Information

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Recruitment Status

UNKNOWN

Clinical Phase

NA

Total Enrollment

135 participants

Study Classification

INTERVENTIONAL

Study Start Date

2020-03-01

Study Completion Date

2022-09-30

Brief Summary

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Study design: Phase II, multicenter, randomized, sham-controlled, single-blind, parallel arm, multicenter study to test the hypothesis that home-based exergames is not inferior to home-based cognitive rehabilitation delivered by a software application (app) for mobile devices and both interventions are superior to a placebo-analogue cognitive intervention in improving cognitive function and reducing cognitive-motor interference in people with multiple sclerosis (MS).

Procedures: Participants will be randomized in a 1:1:1 ratio to receive an 8-week home-based training with exergames (intervention of interest) or adaptive COGNI-TRAcK (comparator intervention) or sham COGNI-TRAcK (placebo-analogue intervention). Study assessment will be done at study enrolment (baseline), at the end of the 8-week intervention period (immediate post-training, Week 8) and after 16 weeks from randomization (post-training follow-up, Week 16).

Investigational interventions:

1. Exergames: home-based repetition of several games delivered by the Nintendo © Wii Balance Board, a commercial off-the-shelf video game console for re-training of balance and postural strategies
2. Adaptive COGNI-TRAcK: adaptive (i.e. automatic adjustment of tasks difficulty) working memory training delivered by a customized application software for mobile devices to self-administer at-home
3. Sham COGNI-TRAcK: non-adaptive (i.e. constant difficulty level) working memory training delivered by the same app as afore described

Primary endpoint: changes at the Symbol Digit Modalities Test (SDMT), a measure of sustained attention and information processing speed.

Secondary endpoint: changes at the BICAMS (z-scores), a brief, practical and universal assessment tool for cognitive impairment in MS.

Additional endpoints: magnitude of cognitive-motor interference estimated as dual-task cost of balance and walking.

Sample size estimation: The investigators estimated a pre-defined 8-point non-inferiority margin, based on a significant effect of the COGNI-TRAcK in inducing an about 8-point mean increase at SDMT score (with respect to a sham intervention). Accordingly, 35 participants per arm are required to ensure, with an approximately 85%-power level, that the lower limit of a one-side 95% confidence interval will be above the pre-defined non-inferiority margin. Therefore, considering also a drop-out rate of 25%, a total of 132 subjects should be enrolled.

Detailed Description

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Conditions

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Multiple Sclerosis

Study Design

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Allocation Method

RANDOMIZED

Intervention Model

PARALLEL

Primary Study Purpose

TREATMENT

Blinding Strategy

SINGLE

Outcome Assessors

Study Groups

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Exergames

Group Type EXPERIMENTAL

Exergames

Intervention Type BEHAVIORAL

The training protocol will be delivered by the Nintendo ® Wii balance board and consists of repetitions of several games selected from the "Wii Fit Plus" package (http:// www.wiifit.com/training/balance-games.html). Each game starts at basic level, and when a certain score is reached, patients is automatically transferred to a more advanced level. Patients will be encouraged to play the next game if they have a level progress; otherwise, 10 minutes will be allocated for each game. During the first 4 weeks of training, patients will be allowed to play only "Zazen" (sitting position), "Table Tilt" and "Ski Slalom"; thereafter they will add the remaining games "Penguin Slide", "Tightrope Walk", "Balance Bubble" and "Soccer Heading".

Adaptive COGNI-TRAcK

Group Type ACTIVE_COMPARATOR

Adaptive COGNI-TRAcK

Intervention Type BEHAVIORAL

The training protocol will be delivered by a dedicated app for mobile devices (mobile phone or tablet). The app implements three different types of exercises (each one executed for about 10 min a session), consisting in a visuo-spatial working memory task, an "operation" N-back task and a "dual" N-back task.

The adaptive training is structured so that the exercises difficulty level will increase by one step every time the user will perform a correct exercise. On the other hand, the difficulty level will decrease by one step if the exercise is incorrect for three times in a row.

Sham COGNI-TRAcK

Group Type SHAM_COMPARATOR

Sham COGNI-TRAcK

Intervention Type BEHAVIORAL

The training protocol will be delivered by a dedicated app for mobile devices (mobile phone or tablet) as previously described for adaptive COGNI-TRAcK. However, the non-adaptive training (placebo-analogue intervention) consists in an algorithm implementing two low difficulty levels alternating every day regardless of the user's performance.

Interventions

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Exergames

The training protocol will be delivered by the Nintendo ® Wii balance board and consists of repetitions of several games selected from the "Wii Fit Plus" package (http:// www.wiifit.com/training/balance-games.html). Each game starts at basic level, and when a certain score is reached, patients is automatically transferred to a more advanced level. Patients will be encouraged to play the next game if they have a level progress; otherwise, 10 minutes will be allocated for each game. During the first 4 weeks of training, patients will be allowed to play only "Zazen" (sitting position), "Table Tilt" and "Ski Slalom"; thereafter they will add the remaining games "Penguin Slide", "Tightrope Walk", "Balance Bubble" and "Soccer Heading".

Intervention Type BEHAVIORAL

Adaptive COGNI-TRAcK

The training protocol will be delivered by a dedicated app for mobile devices (mobile phone or tablet). The app implements three different types of exercises (each one executed for about 10 min a session), consisting in a visuo-spatial working memory task, an "operation" N-back task and a "dual" N-back task.

The adaptive training is structured so that the exercises difficulty level will increase by one step every time the user will perform a correct exercise. On the other hand, the difficulty level will decrease by one step if the exercise is incorrect for three times in a row.

Intervention Type BEHAVIORAL

Sham COGNI-TRAcK

The training protocol will be delivered by a dedicated app for mobile devices (mobile phone or tablet) as previously described for adaptive COGNI-TRAcK. However, the non-adaptive training (placebo-analogue intervention) consists in an algorithm implementing two low difficulty levels alternating every day regardless of the user's performance.

Intervention Type BEHAVIORAL

Eligibility Criteria

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Inclusion Criteria

* age between 18 and 55 years (inclusive);
* cognitive impairment, defined as failure in the SDMT, defined as a corrected score less than 38, i.e. below the 5th percentile of normative value;
* Expanded Disability Status Scale (EDSS) score between 2.0 and 5.5;
* ability to stand upright for at least 180 seconds without any support;
* ability to understand and comply with study requirements;
* ability to provide a valid informed consent before any study procedure.

Exclusion Criteria

* relapse in the previous 6 months;
* initiation of disease-modifying or symptomatic treatments or physiotherapy programme in the 3 months prior to study entry;
* any medication/physiotherapy changes occurring over the previous 3 months;
* significant visual impairment, defined as a Visual System scoring more than 2 at the Kurtzke Functional Systems Score;
* clinically relevant depression, defined as Beck Depression Inventory-II (BDI-II) score equal or more than 14;
* overt dementia, defined as an adjusted Mini Mental State Examination (MMSE) score equal or less than 24;
* history of epilepsy or seizures;
* any medical condition, including musculoskeletal disorders that can interfere with the study conduction.
Minimum Eligible Age

18 Years

Maximum Eligible Age

55 Years

Eligible Sex

ALL

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Sponsors

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Fondazione Don Carlo Gnocchi Onlus

OTHER

Sponsor Role collaborator

Fondazione Italiana Sclerosi Multipla

OTHER

Sponsor Role collaborator

Rehabilitation Unit 'Mons. L. Novarese' Hospital, Moncrivello (VC), IT

UNKNOWN

Sponsor Role collaborator

University of Chieti

OTHER

Sponsor Role collaborator

San Camillo Hospital, Rome

OTHER

Sponsor Role lead

Responsible Party

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Luca Prosperini

Principal Investigator

Responsibility Role PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR

Principal Investigators

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Luca Prosperini, MD, PhD

Role: PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR

A.O. San Camillo-Forlanini

Locations

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Italian MS Foundation

Genova, GE, Italy

Site Status RECRUITING

LaRiCE Lab, Don Gnocchi Foundation IRCCS

Milan, MI, Italy

Site Status RECRUITING

A.O. San Camillo, MS Center

Rome, RM, Italy

Site Status RECRUITING

Dept. of Rehabilitation, M.L. Novarese

Moncrivello, VC, Italy

Site Status RECRUITING

Countries

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Italy

Central Contacts

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Letizia Castelli, MD, PhD

Role: CONTACT

+39658704272

Shalom Haggiag, MD

Role: CONTACT

+39658704272

Facility Contacts

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Giampaolo Brichetto

Role: primary

+39-10-2713832

Davide Cattaneo

Role: primary

+39-2-40308095

Luca Prosperini, M

Role: primary

+39-6-58704272

Claudio Solaro

Role: primary

+39-161-426161

References

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Prosperini L, Tacchino A, Ruggieri S, Brichetto G, Podda J, Anastasi D, Cardini R, Corrini C, Quartuccio ME, Alcamisi I, Di Giovanni R, Gamberini G, Grange E, Pietrolongo E, Rispoli MG, Tomassini V, Cattaneo D, Solaro C. Home-based EXergames To impRovE cognitive function in MUltiple Sclerosis (EXTREMUS). J Neurol Neurosurg Psychiatry. 2025 Oct 1:jnnp-2025-336609. doi: 10.1136/jnnp-2025-336609. Online ahead of print.

Reference Type DERIVED
PMID: 41033785 (View on PubMed)

Provided Documents

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Document Type: Study Protocol

View Document

Other Identifiers

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2017/R/22

Identifier Type: -

Identifier Source: org_study_id

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