Clinical trials

A study investigating the effects of non-invasive electrical stimulation of deep brain structures on working memory, attention, and executive functions involved in everyday activities. Currently, there is no effective treatment for impairments in these functions. The study will evaluate the effects of non-invasive electrical stimulation in both healthy older adults and individuals with mild impairment of these functions. The study combines magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) with non-invasive brain stimulation targeting deep brain structures. Its aim is to improve understanding of the neural mechanisms underlying these cognitive functions and their impairments, as well as to explore the mechanisms of non-invasive brain stimulation for potential future therapeutic applications.

The purpose of this study is to investigate the immediate effects of non-invasive temporal interference stimulation (TIS) targeting the striatum on sentence processing and brain connectivity in patients with neurodegenerative diseases.

Lewy body diseases (LBDs) represents a group of neurodegenerative disorders characterized by the abnormal accumulation of aggregates of α-synuclein protein leading to the formation of Lewy bodies (LB) and Lewy neurites resulting in cell death. LBDs consists of two major clinical entities - Parkinson's disease (PD) and dementia with LB (DLB). Vast majority of patients with LBDs either already have mild cognitive impairment (MCI) at the time of the diagnosis or will develop it during the course of the disease. Language dysfunctions in LBDs patients with MCI are often unrecognized, which are difficult to treat, but even subtle changes might lead to impairment of social and occupational functioning with profound effect on their quality of lives. Current pharmacological or surgical strategies are effective for tackling the motor issues of LBDs with very limited effects on other symptoms such as language dysfunctions. Therefore, non-pharmacological approaches are gaining more attention. One of these non-pharmacological strategies is the use of noninvasive brain stimulation (NIBS) techniques that are able to modulate the brain functions with the effects on human nervous system plasticity. In this proposed project the investigators aim to first describe specific alterations in the language domain in LBDs patients with MCI as compared to healthy controls (HC) and identify the neural underpinnings of these changes using novel combination of advanced multimodal imaging techniques and various analytical methods. Secondly, the investigators aim to use NIBS as a supervised and individualized home-based therapeutical approach to tackle the language dysfunctions.

This study examines how early motor behavior in infants relates to their later psychomotor development. Researchers will observe both preterm and full-term infants during the first months of life, using video-based assessments to evaluate spontaneous movements and early postural control. These early motor patterns will be scored with the Motor Optimality Score - Revised (MOS-R). When the children reach 18 and 36 months of age, their development in areas such as motor skills, communication, sensory processing, and social behavior will be evaluated through a caregiver-completed questionnaire. The purpose of the study is to determine whether early motor quality can predict later developmental outcomes, whether preterm and full-term infants with similar motor scores develop differently, and whether early therapy may improve outcomes for infants with low MOS-R results.

This research project investigates the development of predictive and online motor control in preschool-aged boys with typical development and those with motor difficulties, specifically children at risk for Developmental Coordination Disorder (DCD). The study is being conducted as part of a doctoral dissertation at the Faculty of Sports Studies, Masaryk University in Brno, in cooperation with the integration and rehabilitation center Lentilka in Pardubice. The aim of the study is to assess how children plan, initiate, and adjust their movements in response to a dynamic, time-sensitive task-catching a horizontally moving object (pendulum) under two different time constraints. By comparing performance between typically developing children and those identified as being at risk for motor difficulties, the study aims to improve our understanding of motor control development and support the creation of more effective diagnostic and educational strategies. Participants in this study will be preschool boys from two age groups: 4.6 to 5.0 years and 6.5 to 7.0 years. Each age group will include 10 children with typical motor development and 10 children with motor difficulties, defined as scoring below the 16th percentile on the Movement Assessment Battery for Children - Second Edition (MABC-2). In total, the study aims to recruit 40 participants. Children with intellectual disabilities, autism spectrum disorder, uncorrected visual impairments, hearing loss, psychiatric or neurological conditions, or significant behavioral or orthopedic problems will be excluded from participation. Each child will complete two parts of the study protocol. The first involves a standardized motor assessment using the MABC-2, which evaluates both fine and gross motor skills, including tasks such as threading beads, catching, and balance activities. The second part is an experimental task requiring interception of a swinging foam ring attached to a horizontal pendulum. The children will attempt to stop the pendulum at a precise moment under two time conditions: either on its first pass through the target zone (approximately 0.750 seconds after release) or on its second pass (approximately 1.5 seconds after release). The task will be performed using both the dominant and non-dominant hand, with multiple repetitions in each condition. During the experiment, children will stand on a pressure-sensitive mat (CONFORMat® Tekscan), which records shifts in their center of pressure (COP). Upper limb movement will be captured using reflective markers placed on anatomical landmarks (shoulder, elbow, wrist, and hand), and recorded by four video cameras (two sagittal, two frontal). Movement data will be analyzed using Dartfish software. The study will focus on several key outcome measures: anticipatory postural adjustments (APAs) based on COP movement prior to arm motion, spatial accuracy of the stopping movement (angular deviation), trajectory and velocity of COP displacement, timing of movement initiation based on radial styloid marker velocity, joint angles and segmental velocity, and overall smoothness of upper limb motion. All data and recordings will be pseudonymized, securely stored, and used exclusively for research purposes. Recordings will be deleted upon project completion. This study aims to clarify the developmental trajectory of anticipatory and online motor control strategies in early childhood and to distinguish between typical and atypical motor patterns. The findings are expected to contribute to early screening practices and the development of targeted educational and therapeutic interventions for children with motor coordination difficulties. Ethical approval for the study has been granted by the Research Ethics Committee of Masaryk University. Participation is voluntary, and parents will receive individualized feedback on their child's motor performance after assessment.

This study aims to address the rising incidence of ACL injuries, particularly among adolescents, by developing and implementing a comprehensive prevention program based on the evidence-based "ACL Prevention for ALL" framework recommended by ESSKA-ESMA. The project focuses on muscle strengthening, flexibility, coordination, proper movement techniques, and a multidisciplinary approach involving coaches, physiotherapists, and physicians. Through targeted exercise modules, education, and dynamic evaluation-including 2D motion analysis-the study seeks to reduce ACL injuries, enhance movement safety, and enable individualized training plans by identifying and correcting muscle and biomechanical imbalances.

Approximately 30 minutes after needle EMG, patients who are taking direct oral anticoagulants (DOACs) will undergo an ultrasound examination to evaluate for the presence of possible intramuscular hematomas at the muscles where the EMG needle was inserted. These hematomas are considered a potential adverse effect of needle EMG. The aim of the study is to determine whether needle EMG can be considered a safe procedure in this group of patients, without posing a risk of intramuscular hematoma formation.

The goal of this study is to clarify the role of the bacterium Cutibacterium acnes in the development of degenerative disc disease in patients with lumbar disc herniation who underwent microdiscectomy as part of their regular medical care.

In this study, researchers will examine key predictors of stress reactions in medical students participating in simulation-based communication training. By using psychometric questionnaires and physiological measurements, the study will assess how psychological traits, resilience, and self-efficacy impact stress responses during simulated patient interactions. These simulations use live actors to portray emotionally challenging scenarios, such as communicating with anxious or aggressive patients. The results aim to identify factors that contribute to heightened stress, ultimately guiding the development of targeted stress-management strategies to improve students' readiness for real-world clinical settings.

This study aims to determine whether Point-of-Care Ultrasound (POCUS)-guided treatment is non-inferior to standard NT-proBNP-based care in ambulatory patients following hospitalization for heart failure (HF) over a 12-month follow-up period.

Obesity is a chronic metabolic condition characterized by excessive accumulation of body fat, which triggers physiological mechanisms that increase the risk of a wide range of health problems. The most effective treatment for severe obesity is metabolic-bariatric surgery, which can lead to a 15-20% weight reduction, significantly lowering the risks of illness and death. However, the success of this surgery can be threatened by poor eating habits after the procedure. The main goal of this study is to enhance the long-term effectiveness of bariatric surgery by combining it with non-invasive brain stimulation (tDCS) targeting inhibitory centers before the operation. Additionally, the investigators aim to comprehensively monitor patients before and after surgery, focusing on investigating changes in brain function associated with the achieved weight loss.

The aim of this randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled experiment will be to assess the potential effect of the selected gene polymorphism (CYP1A2, ADORA2A) on performance after caffeine ingestion.

Intensive and critical care in the intensive care unit (ICU) is often associated with ICU delirium and post-ICU dementia, regardless of the nature of the primary disease or insult. Optimal practical management of ICU delirium including its screening, prevention, and treatment, is an integral part of the current recommendations for optimal ICU care, but there are large gaps in the knowledge about the optimal and most effective prevention and treatment of this complication. Information on the actual implementation of these recommendations in the Czech Republic is lacking. The diagnosis of delirium is particularly challenging in neurointensive care patients (due to overlap with symptoms of primary brain lesions) and in a paediatric population. A complementary multicentre observational 4-year follow-up study, performed in an adult neurointensive/critical care stroke cohort and in a paediatric intensive/critical care cohort in centres following currently recommended preventive measures (Delusion-deep-cz) will investigate the incidence of ICU delirium and post-ICU dementia and their modifiable and non-modifiable predisposing and precipitating risk factors. Objectives are to determine the optimal methods for diagnostic screening of these complications and for the differential diagnosis of conditions mimicking delirium (non-convulsive epileptic state) or symptoms hindering its diagnosis (aphasia), and to study the association between sleep disturbances and ICU delirium to verify the role of sleep in the pathophysiology of delirium.

This project aims to monitor the side effects of COVID-19 vaccines worldwide actively. The primary objectives of the project include a) to estimate the prevalence of each local and systemic side effect of each COVID-19 vaccine among healthcare workers (HCW), old adults over +65 (OA), and schoolteachers (ST); b) to evaluate the potential demographic and medical risk factors for side effects frequency and intensity; c) to evaluate the long-term consequences of COVID-19 vaccines. The secondary objectives include a) to evaluate the relative safety of COVID-19 vaccines compared to each other; b) to evaluate the impact of palliative drugs used by the recently vaccinated individuals on their short-term side effects resolution.

Vagal nerve stimulation (VNS) can be indicated in patients with drug-resistant epilepsy who are not eligible for resective epilepsy surgery with responders rates about 50% (≥50% seizure reduction). At the moment, there is not a widely-accepted possibility to predict VNS efficacy in a given patient based on pre-implantation data, which can lead to unnecessary surgery and improper allocation of financial resources. The principal aim of PRECISE (PRediction of vagal nerve stimulation EfficaCcy In drug-reSistant Epilepsy) study is to verify the predictability of VNS efficacy by analysis of pre-implantation routine EEG. The PRECISE relies on the results of our previous work, which developed a statistical classifier for VNS response (responders vs. non-responders) based on differences in EEG power spectra dynamics (Pre-X-Stim). PRECISE is designed as a prospective multicentre study in which patients indicated to VNS therapy will be recruited. Patients will be classified as predicted responders vs. predicted non-responders using pre-implantation EEG analyses. After the first and the second year of the study, the real-life outcome (responder vs. non-responder) will be determined. The real-life outcome and predicted outcome will be compared in terms of accuracy, specificity, and sensitivity. In the meantime, the patients will be managed according to the best clinical practice to obtain the best therapeutical response.