Clinical Trials
Clinical trial and research studies are a crucial part to better understand spasmodic dysphonia. The NSDA provides information on this research study in order to further the scientific understanding of spasmodic dysphonia, but the NSDA does not endorse or recommend participation in this or any other medical research studies.
Clinical Trial - New York, NY
Researchers at the Mount Sinai School of Medicine Columbia University are studying spasmodic dysphonia and essential tremor of voice. Purpose of this research study is to investigate effect of a novel drug, sodium oxybate, on symptoms and brain changes in patients with spasmodic dysphonia and essential tremor of voice.
You may qualify if:
- You have spasmodic dysphonia and/or essential tremor of voice or you are a healthy volunteer;
- Your symptoms are relieved with alcohol;
- You wish to participate in the brain functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) study;
- You are 18 through 75 years of age.
You may not qualify if you have a history of other neurological, psychiatric or voice problems.
Place and Time: The outpatient research study conducted at the Mount Sinai Hospital will include fMRI, which may require up to 2 separate visits, each lasting up to 1 hour.
Cost: There is no cost in participation in the study or any tests associated with the research. If you are a healthy volunteer, you will have only fMRI performed and you will be reimbursed for your time in amount of $50.
This study was approved by the by the Institutional Review Boards of the Mount Sinai School of Medicine on 07/28/2010.
For more information, please call 212- 241-0656. Ask to speak to Dr. Kristina Simonyan, M.D., Ph.D.
Research Opportunity - New York, NY
We are looking to better understand motor control in adductor spasmodic dysphonia (ADSD) by examining the voice changes that occur when people speak using different vocal pitches. Research will be conducted at New York University or in approved Ear, Nose, and Throat offices in the New York area. The time commitment will be one visit lasting less than 2 hours.
Participant criteria includes adults diagnosed with adductor spasmodic dysphonia with no history of surgery to treat ADSD (e.g. recurrent laryngeal nerve surgery), either no history of the use of botulinum toxin injections or in the past 3 years or more, no diagnosed reflux, no diagnosed neurological disorders/conditions besides ADSD that could affect speech production (e.g. Parkinson's disease, brain injury, stroke, essential tremor), no diagnosed respiratory disorders (e.g. chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, asthma), no diagnosed speech disorders (e.g. articulation disorder, dysarthria), no diagnosed voice disorder other than ADSD, normal language ability, and native speakers of American English.
If you are interested in participating or learning more, please contact the Primary Investigator Heather Henry, M.A., CCC-SLP, doctoral student
Phone: 917-848-6954
Email: hmh261@nyu.edu
Faculty Sponsor: Dr. Celia Stewart
Research Opportunity - San Francisco, CA
We are recruiting volunteers with untreated adductor spasmodic dysphonia (ADSD), that have never been treated with Botox, for participation in a non-invasive study of their brain using two different brain scans (fMRI and MEG). The purpose of the study is to compare brain wave patterns in people with untreated ADSD to those of people with muscle tension dysphonia and vocal fold paralysis.
This is a preliminary study designed to collect data and determine the need for a larger study. If successful these studies could help determine the underlying causes of these voice disorders, lead to the development of a testing procedure to aid in diagnosis, and impact treatment.
This study is being performed by the University of California, San Francisco(UCSF) Biomagnetic Imaging Lab in conjunction with the UCSF Voice and Swallowing Center.
Volunteers will be nominally reimbursed for their time.
If you are interested in learning more about this study and in volunteering, please contact Luciana Castro, Ph.D. at LCastro@ohns.ucsf.edu.
For more information on clinical trials, please log on to www.clinicaltrials.gov.
