Nigrosomal Iron Imaging in Parkinson’s Disease (N3iPD)
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Nigrosomal Iron Imaging in Parkinson’s Disease (N3iPD)
IRAS ID
198586
Contact name
Dorothee Auer
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
University of Nottingham
Clinicaltrials.gov Identifier
44131, pFACT; 118294/120004, RGS (contracts)
Duration of Study in the UK
2 years, 11 months, 31 days
Research summary
Parkinson’s is a progressive condition gradually destroying specific nerve cells in the brain which leads to impaired movement control and to other dysfunctions. Detecting Parkinson’s can be very difficult especially in the early stages. If in doubt, treating doctors can ask for a so called “DaTSCAN™” to help them establish the diagnosis. However, this test is not widely available, very expensive and involves injection of a radioactive substance. We recently developed a promising alternative Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) test that can detect established Parkinson’s based on increased iron content in the ‘nigrosomes’ which are tiny brain regions, most affected by the condition.
It this study we will test whether our nigrosome MRI test is as useful as DatSCAN to establish the correct diagnosis in people with minor or unclear symptoms suspicious for Parkinson’s.
We will invite patients with unclear symptoms possibly caused by Parkinson’s from several movement disorder centers in the UK to take part in the study. Participants will undergo our newly proposed MRI test. We will then compare how the diagnosis suggested by the new test compares with the diagnosis based on DaTSCAN™. Finally, we will validate the diagnosis based on the two tests with a clinical examination performed at least one year after the initial presentation.
If we show that nigrosome MRI is as good as DaTSCAN™ to establish the diagnosis in clinically uncertain conditions, we could replace the expensive DaTSCAN™ involving some radiation exposure by a less expensive completely noninvasive MRI test. Importantly the much more widely available MRI test can then benefit a wider group of people with early and uncertain symptoms. Helping doctors to identify the disease early will ensure that affected patients are clear about their diagnosis from the very beginning and that they receive the correct treatment from early on.
REC name
East Midlands - Derby Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
16/EM/0229
Date of REC Opinion
1 Sep 2016
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion