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Understanding Freezing of Gait in Parkinson's Disease

This study aims to understand why some people with Parkinson's disease (PD) experience "freezing of gait" (FOG), a temporary inability to move forward. Researchers will use the Medtronic Percept™ deep brain stimulation (DBS) system to measure brain activity in people with PD, both with and without FOG. You might be eligible if you have idiopathic PD, are between 21 and 75 years old, can walk independently, and have had a Medtronic Percept™ device implanted for at least 3 months. The study will look at how brain activity changes during walking and other movements. The main goals are to measure how people adjust their posture before walking and the characteristics of their first steps during the study intervention.

Study design
This is an interventional study with a planned enrollment of 36 participants. It will compare brain activity in people with Parkinson's disease, both with and without freezing of gait.
What's involved
You will be asked to stop taking your Parkinson's medications for 12 or 24 hours before a visit, and your deep brain stimulation will be turned off at the start of the visit. The study involves three experiments, and you may choose to participate in one or more.
Compensation
Not stated in the trial record.
Follow-up
Not specified.

AI-generated from the public study record. Only the study team can confirm whether you're eligible — confirm details with them before making decisions.

NCT06848205

Percept Transitions in FOG and PD

Recruiting
NAAges 21–75InterventionalBasic science
University of Minnesota
~36 participants
Updated 2026-03-03 on ClinicalTrials.gov
What's tested:OFF Parkinson's Medication(s)OFF Deep Brain Stimulation

At a glance

Recruiting sites
1 of 1 listed site is recruiting right now
RecruitingSuspended, closed, or not yet open
What they're measuring
Quantification of the anticipatory postural adjustments magnitudes (cm)
Measured over During the intervention
+11 more outcomes measured

Conditions

Freezing of Gait
Parkinson Disease

Explore related trials

Freezing of gaitParkinson Disease

NCT06848205

Where you'd take part

This study runs at 1 site. They're the same protocol — you choose where, and that choice sets who your contact draft is addressed to.

  • University of Minnesota, Movement Disorders Lab

    Minneapolis, Minnesotastudy coordinator listed

    Recruiting

Sites open and close at different times, so the status above is per site — it can differ from the study's overall status.

Who to contact

Madison Aasen, MS
[email protected]
612-505-8325
Email the study team

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Eligibility criteria

Inclusion

Diagnosis of idiopathic PD.
Age 21-75 (see Inclusion of Individuals across the Lifespan for justification of age range).
Able to ambulate independently without the use of an assistive device (e.g. cane) for 50 meters.
Implanted Medtronic Percept TM Device.
At least 3 months since the initial activation of the neurostimulator.
Undervalued, under-represented, or disenfranchised social group may be included.
Active members of the military (service members), DoD personnel (including civilian employees) may be included.
Individual or group that is disadvantaged in the distribution of social goods and services such as income, housing, or healthcare may be included.

Exclusion

Meet criteria for dementia with Lewy bodies, Multiple Systems Atrophy, Alzheimer's disease, or other neurodegenerative disorder.
History of seizures or other significant neurological disorders that may affect participation or performance in the study.
History of musculoskeletal disorders that significantly affect walking or movement of limb(s) that would affect the participation in the experimental task (Participants will be excluded from that task, but may participate in other tasks, for example, may be excluded from Experiment 1 if the disorder affects walking, but may still participate in Experiment 3).
History of muscular conditions of the neck and back, including whiplash that would affect walking experiments.
History of visual and/or vestibular conditions that may affect participation or performance in the study.
Reduced capacity to consent. This will be assessed using a 2-stage process. Initially, participants will be tested using the University of California, San Diego, Brief Assessment of Capacity to Consent (UBACC). If concerns are raised from the UBACC test, the individual will be further tested using the MacArthur Competency Assessment Tool.
Pregnant people.
Post-operative complications or adverse effects (e.g. ON stimulation dystonia) that affect patient safety or confound the experiment.

What this trial measures

  • Quantification of the anticipatory postural adjustments magnitudes (cm)During the intervention

    Blocks of 10 successful step initiation trials will be performed. Ground reaction forces (Kistler Inc.) will be recorded.

  • Quantification of the anticipatory postural adjustments duration (sec)During the intervention

    Blocks of 10 successful step initiation trials will be performed. Ground reaction forces (Kistler Inc.) will be recorded.

  • Step characteristics of the first two steps, length (cm)During the intervention

    Blocks of 10 successful step initiation trials will be performed. Ground reaction forces (Kistler Inc.) and bipolar surface electromyographic (EMG) signals will be recorded bilaterally from seven muscles (tibialis anterior, soleus, lateral gastrocnemius, rectus femoris, biceps femoris, semimembranosus, gluteus medius) (Delsys, Trigno) at 1000 Hz and synchronized to whole body kinematics (8-camera motion capture system, SIMI Inc. or Qualisys Inc.) collected at 100 or 120 Hz and with 128-channels of EEG data (BioSemi, Amsterdam) collected at 2000 Hz according to the 10:20 international system 35. Additionally, resting-state EEG will be collected, to reference and remove walking artifact 36 . Local field potentials (LFPs) will be recorded on the Medtronic Percept system and synchronized to the other data collection systems by briefly turning the device on and off.

  • Step characteristics of the first two steps, width (cm)During the intervention

    Blocks of 10 successful step initiation trials will be performed. Ground reaction forces (Kistler Inc.) and bipolar surface electromyographic (EMG) signals will be recorded bilaterally from seven muscles (tibialis anterior, soleus, lateral gastrocnemius, rectus femoris, biceps femoris, semimembranosus, gluteus medius) (Delsys, Trigno) at 1000 Hz and synchronized to whole body kinematics (8-camera motion capture system, SIMI Inc. or Qualisys Inc.) collected at 100 or 120 Hz and with 128-channels of EEG data (BioSemi, Amsterdam) collected at 2000 Hz according to the 10:20 international system 35 . Additionally, resting-state EEG will be collected, to reference and remove walking artifact 36 . Local field potentials (LFPs) will be recorded on the Medtronic Percept system and synchronized to the other data collection systems by briefly turning the device on and off.

  • Step characteristics of the first two steps, duration (sec)During the intervention

    Blocks of 10 successful step initiation trials will be performed. Ground reaction forces (Kistler Inc.) and bipolar surface electromyographic (EMG) signals will be recorded bilaterally from seven muscles (tibialis anterior, soleus, lateral gastrocnemius, rectus femoris, biceps femoris, semimembranosus, gluteus medius) (Delsys, Trigno) at 1000 Hz and synchronized to whole body kinematics (8-camera motion capture system, SIMI Inc. or Qualisys Inc.) collected at 100 or 120 Hz and with 128-channels of EEG data (BioSemi, Amsterdam) collected at 2000 Hz according to the 10:20 international system 35 . Additionally, resting-state EEG will be collected, to reference and remove walking artifact 36 . Local field potentials (LFPs) will be recorded on the Medtronic Percept system and synchronized to the other data collection systems by briefly turning the device on and off.

  • The coherence magnitudes between the cortex and globus pallidus (dB)During the intervention

    Blocks of 10 successful step initiation trials will be performed. Ground reaction forces (Kistler Inc.) and bipolar surface electromyographic (EMG) signals will be recorded bilaterally from seven muscles (tibialis anterior, soleus, lateral gastrocnemius, rectus femoris, biceps femoris, semimembranosus, gluteus medius) (Delsys, Trigno) at 1000 Hz and synchronized to whole body kinematics (8-camera motion capture system, SIMI Inc. or Qualisys Inc.) and with 128-channels of EEG data (BioSemi, Amsterdam) collected at 2000 Hz according to the 10:20 international system 35. Additionally, resting-state EEG will be collected, to reference and remove walking artifact 36. Local field potentials (LFPs) will be recorded on the Medtronic Percept system and synchronized to the other data collection systems by briefly turning the device on and off. Coherence will be calculated between the cortex and basal ganglia, and the magnitudes will be calculated at different frequencies (power, decibels, dB).

  • The coherence magnitudes between the cortex and EMG (dB)During the intervention

    Blocks of 10 successful step initiation trials will be performed. Ground reaction forces (Kistler Inc.) and bipolar surface electromyographic (EMG) signals will be recorded bilaterally from seven muscles (tibialis anterior, soleus, lateral gastrocnemius, rectus femoris, biceps femoris, semimembranosus, gluteus medius) (Delsys, Trigno) at 1000 Hz and synchronized to whole body kinematics (8-camera motion capture system, SIMI Inc. or Qualisys Inc.) and with 128-channels of EEG data (BioSemi, Amsterdam) according to the 10:20 international system 35 . Additionally, resting-state EEG will be collected, to reference and remove walking artifact 36 . Local field potentials (LFPs) will be recorded on the Medtronic Percept system and synchronized to the other data collection systems by briefly turning the device on and off. Coherence will be calculated between the cortex and the muscle activity, and the magnitudes will be calculated at different frequencies (power, decibels, dB).

  • The coherence magnitudes between the globus pallidus and EMG (dB)During the intervention

    Blocks of 10 successful step initiation trials will be performed. Ground reaction forces (Kistler Inc.) and bipolar surface electromyographic (EMG) signals will be recorded bilaterally from seven muscles (tibialis anterior, soleus, lateral gastrocnemius, rectus femoris, biceps femoris, semimembranosus, gluteus medius) (Delsys, Trigno) at 1000 Hz and synchronized to whole body kinematics (8-camera motion capture system, SIMI Inc. or Qualisys Inc.) and with 128-channels of EEG data (BioSemi, Amsterdam) according to the 10:20 international system 35 . Additionally, resting-state EEG will be collected, to reference and remove walking artifact 36 . Localfield potentials (LFPs) will be recorded on the Medtronic Percept system and synchronized to the other data collection systems by briefly turning the device on and off. Coherence will be calculated between the globus pallidus and the muscle activity, and the magnitudes will be calculated at different frequencies (power, decibels, dB).

  • Number of freezing episodesDuring the intervention

    Kinematics will be measured using 6 inertial measurement units (IMUs, Opal sensors, APDM), containing triaxial accelerometers, gyro-scopes, and magnetometers, on each foot and wrist, the fifth lumbar vertebra, and the sternum. This system has been validated for use in PD gait to provide measures of gait (velocity, stride length mean and SD, cadence, and stride time mean and SD), gait initiation (measures of APA and 1 st step characteristics) and turning. Kinematic data will be collected at 128 Hz and synchronized to video recordings and LFP data. LFP and kinematic data will be classified by transition type: initiation, turning, and doorways, and compared during successful transitions, and freezing episodes (unsuccessful transitions). Number of freezing episodes will be identified and rated qualitatively from the videotape by a blinded rater.

  • Rapid Alternating Movements of Wrist Pronation/Supination (degrees)During the intervention

    Participants will perform rapid alternating movements of the wrist or ankle while a manipulandum measures their angular position, with EMG of the moving limb, EEG and LFPs are recorded synchronously. Movements will be cued using a series of beeps that will change randomly between a low and a high- frequency. RMS of the amplitude will be calculated.

  • Rapid Alternating Movements of Supination or Ankle plantar/dorsi-flexion (degrees)During the intervention

    Participants will perform rapid alternating movements of the wrist or ankle while a manipulandum measures their angular position, with EMG of the moving limb, EEG and LFPs are recorded synchronously. Movements will be cued using a series of beeps that will change randomly between a low and a high- frequency. RMS of the amplitude will be calculated.

  • Peak power of local field potential oscillations (dB)During the intervention

    Average changes in peak alpha and beta power derived from power spectral density analysis of the local field potential signal recorded by the implanted Medtronic Percept™ device.