Examining the Effects of Video-game Exercise on Mobility and Brain Plasticity in Individuals With Multiple Sclerosis
Condition: Multiple Sclerosis
MeSH terms: Multiple Sclerosis; Sclerosis
Study type: Interventional

Summary: 
      Dance Dance Revolution (DDR) may offer an innovative and highly effective format for
      delivering exercise programs to people with multiple sclerosis (MS). It is a fun, engaging
      and interactive video game that requires players to move their feet to targets while matching
      the rhythm of a song. In addition, DDR, involving both aerobic exercise and cognitive
      training, is an ideal intervention for improving cognitive functioning in those with MS. The
      purpose of this pilot study is to examine the use of DDR as a novel and highly specific
      exercise intervention to improve mobility and cognition among individuals with MS.
    

Detailed description: 
      Dance Dance Revolution (DDR) may offer an innovative and highly effective format for
      delivering exercise programs to people with MS. It is a fun, engaging and interactive video
      game that requires players to move their feet to targets while matching the rhythm of a song.
      In addition, DDR, involving both aerobic exercise and cognitive training, is an ideal
      intervention for improving cognitive functioning in those with MS. The purpose of this pilot
      study is to examine the use of DDR as a novel and highly specific exercise intervention to
      improve mobility and cognition among individuals with MS. We will be guided by the following
      three specific aims and hypotheses:

      Specific Aim 1: Determine if an eight-week exercise program administered using DDR improves
      dynamic balance in people with MS relative to a wait-list control group.

      Hypothesis 1: Dynamic balance as measured by the Berg Balance Scale will be more improved
      with the DDR intervention than the wait-list control group.

      Specific Aim 2: Determine if the DDR intervention, combining fitness and cognitive training,
      over the course of an eight-week intervention, will have a more positive effect on domains of
      processing speed and executive control, than a wait-list control group.

      Hypothesis 2: The DDR group relative to the wait-list control group, will show significant
      improvement in cognitive functioning as assessed by the Paced Auditory Serial Addition Test
      (PASAT), a measure of processing speed, and executive functioning. Specifically, we
      hypothesize that given severe deficits in processing speed and executive control,
      participation in a DDR intervention, will result in a significant improvement on the PASAT, a
      widely used measure to assess cognitive functioning in patients with MS.

      Specific Aim 3: We will also examine whether improvements in cognitive processes engendered
      by DDR on the PASAT will be supported by changes in underlying neural circuits, as inferred
      from patterns of event-related functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) activation
      obtained in a 3 Tesla scanner.

      Hypothesis 3: Improvements in cognition as indexed by higher accuracy scores and faster
      reaction time on the PASAT, will be accompanied by a change in the recruitment of underlying
      neural processes as inferred from functional magnetic resonance imaging. MS participants in
      the DDR group will show an increase in recruitment of the attentional network, and more
      specifically the prefrontal and parietal cortices, cortical regions responsible for
      successful performance on the PASAT task.
    

Intervention name(s): Dance Dance Revolution video game play
Intervention type(s): Other
Intervention description(s): Individuals play dance dance revolution 3 times a week for 8 weeks
Allocation: Randomized
Intervention model: Parallel Assignment
Masking: Single (Investigator)
Primary purpose: Treatment
Keywords: multiple sclerosis; mobility; cognition; neuroplasticity; videogame play