Drooling in Parkinson's Disease: a case for divided attention
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Drooling in Parkinson's Disease: a case for divided attention
IRAS ID
185645
Contact name
Richard Walker
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
Northumbria Healthcare NHS FoundationTrust
Duration of Study in the UK
0 years, 10 months, 31 days
Research summary
Studies have shown that many people with Parkinson's Disease experience drooling(Johnston et al 1995) and it has a significant impact on their quality of life (Kalf et al 2007, Leibner et al 2010). Drooling happens because Parkinson's Disease affects the ability to swallow saliva efficiently and quickly (Nobrega et al 2008; Kalf et al 2012; Srivanitchapoom et al 2014). It tends to occur when people are busy doing another task (Kalf 2007). Treatment success with medication and behavioural treatments has been variable (Srivanitchapoom et al 2014; Marks L 2001). This study aims to find out if drooling is affected by the ability of people with Parkinson's disease to divide their attention between a task requiring thought and attention and monitoring their own saliva. Our question is: Does divided attention affect drooling in Parkinson's Disease.
The study will recruit 20 people with Parkinson's Disease who report daytime drooling. They will be invited to participate in the study which will be conducted in their own homes. The study will require 2.5 hours of their time split into 2 sessions. In the first session they will complete a validated questionnaire on drooling (ROMP-S Kalf et al 2011)and an assessment of cognition(MOCA- Nasriddine et al 2005). Then in the second session their swallowing and drooling will be observed when sat at rest in a chair for 30 minutes and then during a series of listening tasks lasting 30 minutes. Their swallowing will be recorded in a small microphone headset and recording device and drooling will be observed at 5 minute intervals using a rating scale and video recording.The findings will inform further research and guide planning of interventions for drooling in Parkinson's Disease.
REC name
North East - Newcastle & North Tyneside 2 Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
15/NE/0297
Date of REC Opinion
28 Sep 2015
REC opinion
Favourable Opinion