MIDAS
Research type
Research Study
Full title
123I-MIBG in Dementia with Lewy bodies as a marker for sympathetic denervation (Pilot and Feasibility Study)
IRAS ID
165749
Contact name
Alan Thomas
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
Duration of Study in the UK
2 years, 8 months, 0 days
Research summary
This study intends to investigate the presence or absence of impairment of cardiac nerve integrity (denervation) in patients with Dementia with Lewy Bodies (DLB). DLB is a disorder that is common, but is poorly detected in clinical practice, partly because it is frequently difficult to distinguish from Alzheimer’s Disease (AD). We will compare cardiac nerve integrity in a group of patients with DLB with that in a group of patients with AD, as there has been evidence that DLB can affect nerves not only in the brain, but elsewhere in the body.
We intend to compare and quantify cardiac integrity by determining the uptake of a radioactive material, MIBG, using scanning techniques. These scans allow us to visualise how the nerve takes up MIBG; where uptake of MIBG is decreased, the integrity is likely to be compromised.
The research team expect that uptake will be considerably lower in the DLB group than in the AD group, reflecting greater denervation, helping us better understand how DLB develops and how it differs from AD.
We also aim to investigate denervation in a smaller group of patients who have previously had a different type of scan (FP-CIT), but for whom the negative result is at odds with the clinical diagnosis (i.e. the diagnosis based on symptoms, course and other factors). We think that using MIBG to assess denervation might help us better understand how DLB manifests in ways that some scans, like FP-CIT, aren’t able to identify.
The information gained in this pilot study will help us better understand the relationship between MIBG and FP-CIT scans and will help us plan and carry out larger studies in the future that compare the scans directly.
REC name
North East - Newcastle & North Tyneside 1 Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
15/NE/0034
Date of REC Opinion
20 Feb 2015
REC opinion
Favourable Opinion