Frontotemporal dementia (FTD) is a devastating neurodegenerative disorder. It is the second most frequent cause of presenile neurodegenerative dementia in those less than 65 years of age. Currently, there is no effective pharmacological treatment to slow down the progression of FTD. Recently, it has been proposed that neuroinflammation could be involved in specific forms of FTD and that novel drugs targeting neuroinflammation could potentially be useful in FTD treatment. An available form of ultra-micronized PEA combined with luteoline (PEA-LUT) has gained attention for its proven anti-inflammatory and neuroprotective properties reported in neurodegenerative conditions related to FTD, such as Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis. The administration of PEA-LUT treatment may have a clinical impact in behavioural variant FTD (bv-FTD) patients. In particular, PEA-LUT treatment could be able to reduce behavioural disturbances, the more disabling symptoms in bv-FTD, with a related improvement of daily living activities of affected people. Moreover, a multimodal approach (cognitive/neurophysiological) can be used to assess the brain correlates related to the clinical improvement associated with PEA-LUT treatment, thus making remarkable strides in understanding how FTD affects the brain. Potentially the proposed project could provide a valid treatment for cognitive and behavioural dysfunction in FTD patients, with consistent impact for the National Health Systems and minimum cost for the patients.
Study Type
INTERVENTIONAL
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Purpose
SUPPORTIVE_CARE
Masking
TRIPLE
Enrollment
50
Giacomo Koch
Rome, Italy
Santa Lucia Foundation
Rome, Italy
Clinical Dementia Rating Scale- Frontotemporal dementia Sumo of Boxes (CDR-FTD-SOB)
Battery to evaluate global disease severity
Time frame: 24 weeks
Frontal Assessment Battery (FAB)
Battery to evaluate executive functions
Time frame: 24 weeks
Screening for aphasia in Neurodegeneration (SAND)
battery to evaluate language functions
Time frame: 24 weeks
Alzheimer's Disease Cooperative Study - Activities of Daily Living (ADCS-ADL)
battery to evaluate activities of daily living
Time frame: 24 weeks
Mini Mental State Examination (MMSE)
battery to evaluate global cognition
Time frame: 24 weeks
Long intracortical inhibition (LICI)
TMS protocol to evaluate GABA(B)ergic transmission
Time frame: 24 weeks
Sort intracortical inhibition (SICI)
TMS protocol to evaluate GABA(B)ergic transmission
Time frame: 24 weeks
TMS-EEG
power in beta-gamma band to evaluate prefrontal cortical oscillatory activity
Time frame: 24 weeks
Neuropsychiatric Inventory (NPI)
Battery to assess behavioral changes
Time frame: 24 weeks
Addenbrooke's Cognitive Examination Revised (ACE-R)
Battery to evaluate global cognition changes
Time frame: 24 weeks
Frontal Behavioural Inventory
Battery to evaluate behavioural functions
Time frame: 24 weeks
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