Trial results for a study investigating aerobic exercise in Parkinson's Disease were posted on ClinicalTrials.gov on 2026-03-12, with 57 participants enrolled.
Background
Parkinson's disease (PD) is an incurable brain illness that afflicts more than one million Americans. It causes progressive impairment of movement and mental function, leading to loss of critical abilities. While drugs and surgery can help movement problems, their benefits are temporary and may have side effects, and they offer limited benefit for cognition. Preliminary studies on aerobic exercise have shown promising results in this context.
Trial design
This completed study, designated as Phase NA, enrolled 57 participants with Parkinson's Disease. The trial investigated the effects of aerobic exercise compared to a control group on various aspects of the condition.
Key results
The trial reported several key measurements comparing the aerobic exercise group to the control group:
- Change in MDS-UPDRS Part III Motor (OFF) Score (score on scale):
- Aerobic group showed a mean change of 0.44 (Standard Deviation 8.46).
- Control group showed a mean change of -2.96 (Standard Deviation 8.31).
- Change in Flanker Task (scores on a scale):
- Aerobic group showed a mean change of 3.6 (Standard Deviation 18.5).
- Control group showed a mean change of -1.0 (Standard Deviation 5.8).
- Change in Road Safety Error Count (Errors):
- Aerobic group showed a mean change of -3.9 (Standard Deviation 10.7).
- Control group showed a mean change of -2.5 (Standard Deviation 9.5).
- Change in the Parkinson's Disease Questionnaire-39 (PDQ-39) Score (score on scale):
- Aerobic group showed a mean change of -0.11 (Standard Deviation 4.64).
- Control group showed a mean change of 1.04 (Standard Deviation 4.18).
- Change in MDS-UPDRS Non-motor Experiences of Daily Living Subscale (Part I) Score (score on scale):
- Aerobic group showed a mean change of 0.41 (Standard Deviation 5.56).
- Control group showed a mean change of 0.15 (Standard Deviation 4.00).
- Change in MDS-UPDRS Motor Experiences of Daily Living Score (Part II) (score on scale):
- Aerobic group showed a mean change of -0.04 (Standard Deviation 4.16).
- Control group showed a mean change of 1.15 (Standard Deviation 2.74).
Statistical analyses were performed using t-tests (2-sided) with a p-value threshold of 0.05.
What this means
The posted results provide data on the impact of aerobic exercise on various aspects of Parkinson's Disease, including motor function, cognition, and quality of life. The aerobic exercise group showed numerically different changes compared to the control group across several outcome measures. For example, the aerobic group had a mean change of 0.44 in MDS-UPDRS Part III Motor (OFF) Score, compared to -2.96 in the control group. Similarly, for the Parkinson's Disease Questionnaire-39 (PDQ-39) Score, the aerobic group showed a mean change of -0.11, while the control group had a mean change of 1.04. These numerical differences suggest potential areas where aerobic exercise may influence disease progression or symptoms, but without specific statistical significance for each outcome, further research is needed to confirm clinical relevance.
Source
The information regarding these trial results was obtained from ClinicalTrials.gov, a public database of clinical studies. The results for the study NCT03808675, titled "Aerobic Exercise in Parkinson's Disease", were posted on 2026-03-12 on clinicaltrials.gov.