Effect of Combined PAS Balance Training on Individuals With Parkinson Disease

What this Trial Is About

Researchers are investigating balance and movement difficulties in people with Parkinson's disease (PD), specifically focusing on problems with starting to walk related to anticipatory postural adjustments (APA). This study aims to understand how different training methods, explicit and implicit, affect these movements and to explore how a brain stimulation technique called paired associative stimulation (PAS) might enhance the training effects and brain plasticity in PD patients. Participants will receive one of two types of training: weight shift training with visual feedback on APA using a force plate, or PAS which combines brain and nerve stimulation targeting leg muscles and the motor cortex. The study is randomized and compares these two experimental interventions to evaluate their effects on motor learning and brain function related to gait initiation in PD. Throughout the study, participants will be assessed at baseline, 4 weeks, and 8 weeks for balance performance, walking speed, step length and timing, and brain activity measures such as motor evoked potentials and intracortical facilitation/inhibition. The researchers will also monitor detailed balance and gait parameters using force plate data. This comprehensive evaluation will help understand both functional and neurophysiological changes during and after the interventions.

PAS Balance Training for Parkinson Disease (PD)