Project Overview

Most people with Parkinson’s Disease (PD) suffer from sleep problems and show marked alterations in sleep architecture (i.e., the basic structural organization of normal sleep). These alterations are clinically relevant because they increase the risk of developing age-related cognitive problems and dementia and can accelerate the motor deterioration of the disease.

Exercise may improve sleep quality and architecture in PD. However, the optimal exercise modality to significantly enhance sleep in this clinical population is unknown. Furthermore, whether exercise-induced changes in sleep architecture mediate cognitive and motor function improvements is still to be determined. To bridge these knowledge gaps, we are conducting a randomized controlled trial, comparing the effects of different exercise modalities with a non-exercise control condition on sleep quality and architecture in people with PD. Additionally, we are investigating whether exercise-induced changes in sleep architecture mediate cognitive and motor function improvements. Our study will be the first to investigate the role of exercise modality in promoting changes in sleep quality and architecture in people with PD. The study will also be the first to investigate interactions between exercise-induced changes in architecture with cognitive and motor function. The results will provide important information to guide the design of more personalized exercise-based treatments that are patient-oriented and aimed at optimizing sleep, cognition, and motor function in PD.

Principal Investigator

Jacopo Cristini , McGill University

Partners and Donors

Mireille and Steinberg Foundation and the Growling Beaver Brevet