Banca de QUALIFICAÇÃO: LAYLA CUPERTINO SALLOUM E SILVA

Uma banca de QUALIFICAÇÃO de MESTRADO foi cadastrada pelo programa.
STUDENT : LAYLA CUPERTINO SALLOUM E SILVA
DATE: 31/01/2023
TIME: 14:00
LOCAL: https://conferenciaweb.rnp.br/webconf/daniel-25
TITLE:

Neural correlates of freezing of gait in a safe virtual reality-based setup in individuals with Parkinson's disease

PAGES: 21
BIG AREA: Ciências da Saúde
AREA: Fisioterapia e Terapia Ocupacional
SUMMARY:

One of the most debilitating symptoms in individuals with Parkinson's disease (PD) is the Freezing of Gait (FoG). The management of the FoG is not efficient with the currently available medications, neurosurgery, and physical interventions, given the lack of pathophysiology knowledge of this complex phenomenon. Therefore, an in-­depth investigation of the dynamics of the postural circuitry in the brain in patients with FoG is fundamental to moving toward better understanding and efficient treatment possibilities. Furthermore, emerging evidence showed that emotional disturbances arising from affective disorders such as anxiety and fear of falling could contribute to gait disorders in PD. Therefore, training in safe environments can contribute to rehabilitation. Virtual reality (VR) gait paradigms offer the potential for safe and objective PD-FoG evaluation. Here, we aim to build and validate a setup integrating VR and a robotic device, permitting us to investigate FoG in a safe seated position. Our first scientific objective is to investigate whether biomechanical and neural freezing measurements in our setup (the LegoPress) correlate to objective and subjective measures of FoG in a standing position. Once we have tested and validated our setup as a useful tool to induce and unstruck FoG episodes, LegoPress can be used to improve our understanding of neural activity in the periods leading up to and during episodes of FoG. For this, we will analyze 40 individuals with idiopathic Parkinson's disease, divided into two equal groups (with and without FoG). The subjects will do a task of walking in a virtual reality environment whose scenario will provide FoG episodes. Afterwards, they will do a task of alternating turns and walking with obstacles. We will measure neural activity using fNIRS and FoG times using inertial sensors. We will analyze neural activity of supplementary motor area and dorsolateral frontal cortex in three periods: (1) baseline: walk without FoG episodes, (2) pre-FoG: 3 seconds preceding FoG episodes, and (3) during FoG episodes. With this, we intend to analyze whether freezing behavior observed during a virtual reality gait task may share similar neural substrates to freezing of gait. Such a relationship could offer a potential avenue for modeling the phenomenon of freezing of gait in Parkinson’s disease, allowing for the exploration of the neural correlates of freezing.

COMMITTEE MEMBERS:
Presidente - Interno ao Programa - 1955999 - ANDRE MASCIOLI CRAVO
Membro Titular - Examinador(a) Externo à Instituição - LUIS MOCHIZUKI - USP
Membro Titular - Examinador(a) Externo à Instituição - FÁBIO AUGUSTO BARBIERI - UNESP
Membro Suplente - Examinador(a) Interno ao Programa - 1653406 - ABRAHAO FONTES BAPTISTA
Membro Suplente - Examinador(a) Externo ao Programa - 2090962 - REGINALDO KISHO FUKUCHI
Membro Suplente - Examinador(a) Externo à Instituição - LUIS AUGUSTO TEIXEIRA - USP