ClinicalTrials.gg
CompletedNCT04125628Updated Oct 14, 2019

Exercise on Multiple Sclerosis Patients

An interventional study of Exercise with cooling and Exercise without cooling in Multiple Sclerosis, sponsored by Petros Dinas. Completed at 1 site in Greece. Per ClinicalTrials.gov, last updated 2019-10-14.

Sponsored by Petros Dinas · Not applicable, Interventional, and Prevention

From the registry’s dates

  • Registered 4 months after the study started (first participant enrolled Jun 2019, registered Oct 2019).
Phase
Not applicable
Study type
Interventional
Enrollment
10
Allocation
Randomized
Sex
All
01

Study summary

Multiple sclerosis (MS) patients are characterized by thermoregulatory failure, known as Uthoff's phenomenon. Precisely, 60-80% of the MS patients present adverse clinical symptoms when their body temperature is increased. Thus, the development of treatment strategies to overcome the thermoregulatory problem in these patients is crucial. Given that cooling has been proposed as an effective method, the aim of this study was to examine whether the application of head cooling therapy during an exercise training session is capable to prevent the core temperature increase and to improve the patient's functional ability and quality of life.

Read the detailed description

Multiple Sclerosis (MS) mostly affects young individuals aged between 20 to 40 years and is the leading cause of morbidity and disability in young. Most of the MS patients experience motor symptoms such as ataxia, tremor, dizziness, limb weakness and vertigo that induce gait difficulty. More precisely, it has been reported that in around 85% of patients diagnosed with MS the gait difficulties are the main problem, which increases the risk for falls. Except for the motor difficulties, MS patients experience multiple physical, cognitive and neurological symptoms that reduce their quality of life. Also, fatigue is another frequent symptom, which is considered among the most disabling symptoms. MS patients 10 years after the onset of the disease become unable to perform housekeeping and employment responsibilities, and as a consequence, the patients experience high depression rates while the suicide incidence is high, varying from 28.6% to 2.5% in these patients. Over the past 15 years a variety of studies have proved that exercise training in patients with chronic diseases, improve their functional capacity and quality of life, and accordingly are capable of performing their daily living activities independently, while it can reduce depression and delay the progression of the disease's symptoms. Nevertheless, MS patients for many years were advised not to participate in exercise training programs because there was a perception that exercise could worsen the disease symptoms due to increased body temperature. Indeed 60-80% of the MS patients present adverse clinical symptoms when their body temperature is increased not only due to physical working but even when immersing in hot water or by exposure to infrared lamps or the sun. Since MS has a severe economic impact as it affects mostly young adults in their most productive years and leads to loss of work capacity and exercise training has the potential to prevent or ameliorate this loss, the need to develop new treatment strategies that could overcome the thermoregulatory problem during exercise is crucial. Therefore, it has been proposed that active precooling is considered an effective treatment for reducing the consequences of induced-heat stress due to exercise. Therefore, this study will examine whether a session of pre-cooling could improve the functional ability of patients with MS.

02

Conditions studied

  • Multiple Sclerosis

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Keywords

  • Uthoff's phenomenon
  • Thermosensitivity
  • Functional capacity
  • Exercise intolerance
03

In context

Multiple Sclerosis

3,524 studies on the registry are indexed under Multiple Sclerosis; 668 are open to participants now.

This study's enrollment of 10 is below the median of 50 across 2,386 interventional studies indexed under Multiple Sclerosis.

Browse Multiple Sclerosis studies →

Lead sponsor

Petros Dinas is the lead sponsor of 10 studies on the registry; none are open to participants now.

Counted across the registry records on this site, refreshed daily.

04

Who can participate

Ages eligible
Child (0–17), Adult (18–64), Older adult (65+)
Sexes eligible
All
Accepts healthy volunteers
Yes

Go through the criteria one by one — yes, no or not sure — and take the list to your doctor or the study team. Kept in this browser only.

Inclusion criteria

  • Postmenopausal women (no menses for the last year at least);
  • Osteoporosis patients (female): T-score\<-2.5 at the femoral neck (or other anatomical site);
  • Osteoporosis patients (male): T-score\<-2.5 at the femoral neck (or other anatomical site)
  • Osteopenia patients (female): T-score\<-1.0 at the femoral neck (or other anatomical site);
  • Osteopenia patients (male): T-score\<-1.0 at the femoral neck (or other anatomical site)
  • Patients taking drugs/ supplements for osteoporosis will be accepted in the study after going through a wash-up period

Exclusion criteria

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Women with irregular menses (i.e. with no established menopause)
  • Patients taking medications for other diseases known to interfere with bone metabolism
  • Patients with other chronic diseases (e.g. diabetes)
05

Study design

Phase
Not applicable
Primary purpose
Prevention
Allocation
Randomized
Intervention model
Crossover assignment
Masking
Double (Participant, Care provider)
Enrollment
10 participants (actual)

Study arms

  • Experimental
    Exercise with cooling

    Assigned Interventions 10 MS patients (aged 25----50 years) with Expanded Disability Status Scale between 2 to 6.5 have agreed to participate in this study. The exercise training session involved head cooling and neck wraps. The exercise training session consisted of 40 min continuous cycling where the participants performed an incremental sub-maximal exercise protocol beginning at 45 W, increasing 10 W every 10 min for a total of four stages on a semirecumbent cycle ergometer in a 20oC room. Before and after the completion of the session each participant performed a variety of functional ability tests. The evaluation of the core temperature and the assessment of the patient's quality of life also was performed.

    Behavioral: Exercise with cooling

  • Active comparator
    Exercise without cooling

    10 MS patients (aged 25----50 years) with Expanded Disability Status Scale between 2 to 6.5 have agreed to participate in this study. The exercise session performed without cooling. The exercise training session consisted of 40 min continuous cycling where the participants performed an incremental sub-maximal exercise protocol beginning at 45 W, increasing 10 W every 10 min for a total of four stages on a semirecumbent cycle ergometer in a 20oC room. Before and after the completion of the session each participant performed a variety of functional ability tests. The evaluation of the core temperature and the assessment of the patient's quality of life also was performed.

    Behavioral: Exercise without cooling

Interventions

  • BehavioralExercise with cooling

    The exercise training session involved head cooling and neck wraps. Participants followed a 40-minute continuous cycling where they performed an incremental sub-maximal exercise protocol beginning at 45 W, increasing 10 W every 10 min for a total of four stages on a semirecumbent cycle ergometer in a 20oC room. Before and after the completion of the condition each participant performed a variety of functional ability tests. The evaluation of the core temperature and the assessment of the patient's quality of life also was performed

  • BehavioralExercise without cooling

    The exercise session performed without cooling. Participants followed a 40-minute continuous cycling where they performed an incremental sub-maximal exercise protocol beginning at 45 W, increasing 10 W every 10 min for a total of four stages on a semirecumbent cycle ergometer in a 20oC room. Before and after the completion of the session each participant performed a variety of functional ability tests. The evaluation of the core temperature and the assessment of the patient's quality of life also was performed.

06

What researchers measure

Primary outcomes

  1. Core Temperature

    The core temperature was measured using a telemetric capsule or (e-Celsius Performance, BodyCap, Caen, France). Temperature at the skin surface was recorded every second at four sites using iBUTTON sensors (type DS1921 H, Maxim/Dallas Semiconductor Corp., USA) \[Tsk; 0.3 (chest C arm) C 0.2 (thigh C leg)\].

    Time frame: Change from baseline to after 40 minutes of continous cycling.

  2. Functional ability test Handgrip

    Handgrip dynamometer was used for the upper body muscle strength evaluation. Both hands was tested.

    Time frame: Change from baseline to after 40 minutes of continous cycling.

  3. Functional ability test 2-minute walk

    The two-minute walk test was applied where all the patients had to cover as far a distance as possible over 2 minutes. All the walking tests are related with the ability to perform independently the activities of daily living

    Time frame: Change from baseline to after 40 minutes of continous cycling.

  4. Functional ability test 25-Foot Walk (T25-FW)

    The 25-Foot Walk (T25-FW) was used to measure the walking speed. It is a validated test that reflects the patient's mobility and leg function performance

    Time frame: Change from baseline to after 40 minutes of continous cycling.

  5. Functional ability test five times sit-to-stand test (STS)

    The five times sit-to-stand test (STS) was used as an indicator for lower limb strength, balance and mobility. It has been reported that the STS times are associated with standing and leaning balance and mobility in older people. Slow STS time have been also found to predict subsequent disability, falls and hip fractures

    Time frame: Change from baseline to after 40 minutes of continous cycling.

  6. Functional ability test Berg Balance Scale (BBS)

    The Berg Balance Scale (BBS) evaluates the performance in specific activities that require balance function. The BBS test lasts approximately 20 minutes and involves common actions (e.g. sit to stand, picking up an object, standing on one leg e.t.c.) necessary for activities of daily living. The BBS is a 14-item list with each item consisting of a five-point ordinal scale ranging from 0 to 4, with 0 indicating the lowest level of function and 4 the highest level of function.

    Time frame: Change from baseline to after 40 minutes of continous cycling.

  7. Functional ability test level of fatigue severity (FSS)

    The FSS is a 9-item self-report scale about fatigue of certain activities. Its score includes a 7-point scale from 1 = strongly disagree to 7 = strongly agree. The minimum possible score is nine and the highest is 63. High score indicates severe fatigue. FSS takes approximately eight minutes to complete.

    Time frame: Change from baseline to after 40 minutes of continous cycling.

  8. Functional ability test Cognitive function

    Cognitive function was assessed with the mini mental state examination (MMSE) questionnaire. MMSE includes tests of orientation, attention, memory, language and visual-spatial skills. The answers in the MMSE are scored as following: 0=incorrect, 1=correct, 6= item administered, participant does not answer and 9= unknown

    Time frame: Change from baseline to after 40 minutes of continous cycling.

  9. Functional ability test level of fatigue impact

    Level of fatigue was assessed by the Modified Fatigue Impact Scale (MFIS). The MFIS contains the following sections: a) Physical Sub-scale (score 0-36), b) Cognitive Sub-scale (score 0-40) and Psychological Sub-scale (score 0-8). The total MFIS score is 0-84; 0 represents the lower score and 84 represents the higher score.

    Time frame: Change from baseline to after 40 minutes of continous cycling.

  10. Functional ability test level of fatigue inventory

    Level of fatigue was assessed by the 20-item scale Multidimensional Fatigue Inventory (MFI) questionnaire. The score of MFI is 1-7. The more the fatigue, the higher the score.

    Time frame: Change from baseline to after 40 minutes of continous cycling.

  11. Functional ability test level of physical fatigue

    Level of fatigue was assessed by the Cognitive and Physical Fatigue in Multiple Sclerosis Scale (CPF-MS). The CPF-MS score is 1-5. The more the fatigue, the higher the score.

    Time frame: Change from baseline to after 40 minutes of continous cycling.

07

Study locations

1 site
  • FAME Lab, Department of Exercise Science, University of Thessaly
    Trikala, Thessaly 42100, Greece
08

References and documents

Individual participant data

Plan to share: No

No publications or documents are linked to this record.

09

Timeline

Tracking since Sep 25, 2026
ElapsedEstimatedEstimated, not yet reachedSimilar studies: half by the dot; the band is the middle halfHalf of similar studies reached it by the dot; the band is the middle half, from a quarter to three quarters

Ran from Jun 2019 to primary completion in Jun 2019, 0 months.

Of 868 non-industry interventional studies with no phase under Multiple Sclerosis, half reached primary completion within 22 months of starting (the median), counting those still running; a quarter within 9 and three quarters within 43. This study's 0 months is below that.

Counting every sponsor, half of 889 studies reached it within 21 months; a quarter within 9 and three quarters within 43.

How these figures are worked out, and which studies are left out of them.

Registered
Oct 8, 2019
First posted
Oct 14, 2019
StartActual
Jun 1, 2019
Primary completionActual
Jun 25, 2019
CompletionActual
Jun 25, 2019
Last update
Oct 14, 2019
What these dates mean
Start.
When the first participant enrolled; while estimated, when the study expects to open to recruitment.
Primary completion.
When the last participant was examined or treated to collect data for the study's main question, its primary outcome. A study that stopped early gives the date its data collection stopped.
Completion.
When the last participant's last visit took place, for every outcome, secondary ones and side effects included: the end of the study. Often later than primary completion, sometimes the same day.
Actual and Est.
Actual means the registry says the date has happened. Est. (estimated) is a date the sponsor plans or expects. It can still move, and the sponsor is expected to change it to actual once it has passed.
No changes since tracking began. The registry record was last updated on Oct 14, 2019, before this site started recording changes on Sep 25, 2026. Its history is on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗
10

Registry details

Key details

Study ID
NCT04125628
Lead sponsor
Petros Dinas
Responsible party
Petros Dinas (Senior Researcher in human physiology, University of Thessaly) — Sponsor-investigator
First posted
Oct 14, 2019
Start date
Jun 1, 2019
Primary completion
Jun 25, 2019
Completion
Jun 25, 2019
Last update
Oct 14, 2019

Study contacts

Antonia Kaltsatou, PhD
principal investigator · FAME Laboratory, Department of Exercise Science, University of Thessaly

Oversight

Data monitoring committee
No
FDA-regulated drug
No
FDA-regulated device
No
View the source record on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗

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