Gait Adaptability in Persons With MS Having Mild Disability

Recruiting now

Conditions studied: Multiple Sclerosis, Healthy Adults

In brief

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a chronic inflammatory and neurodegenerative disease of the central nervous system that frequently leads to walking impairment, balance deficits, fatigue, cognitive difficulties, and an increased risk of falls. Importantly, these problems can already be present in the early stages of the disease and may not be adequately captured by standard clinical walking tests, which primarily assess speed or distance. Such tests are often insufficient to reflect the complexity of real-life walking, which requires continuous adaptation to environmental challenges, and attention to internal and external stimuli. Gait adaptability, the ability to modify walking patterns in response to changing and unpredictable demands such as obstacles or sudden perturbations, is critical for safe mobility and fall prevention. Both proactive (anticipatory) and reactive (feedback-driven) gait adaptations are essential for maintaining balance and functional independence. However, gait adaptability and its underlying neural mechanisms remain insufficiently understood in people with MS. This study aims to provide a comprehensive assessment of gait adaptability in people with MS by evaluating both proactive and reactive gait adaptations using objective gait measurements and cortical activity recordings. The findings may contribute to the development of more sensitive outcome measures and inform targeted rehabilitation strategies that better reflect real-life mobility demands. Primary aims: • To investigate the behavioral measures and neural correlates of reactive and proactive gait adaptability in pwMS compared to HC Secondary aims: * To investigate factors related to gait adaptability * To investigate changes in gait adaptability during prolonged walking conditions

Key facts

Study ID

NCT07580820

Run by

Hasselt University

People needed

32

Starts

2025-12-05

Expected to finish

2026-12-20

Last updated by the study team

2026-05-12

Who can join

Age: 18 and older, up to 65. Sex: any. Healthy volunteers: accepted.

You may qualify if…

• Age between 18-65 years,
• confirmed diagnosis of definite MS,
• relapse free at least 30 days,
• Expanded Disability Status Scale (EDSS) score between 0 and 3.5

You may not qualify if…

• Diagnosed with neurological disease other than MS
• cognitive decline that renders the patient incapable of performing tests and questionnaires.
• Other neurological, orthopedic, or visual impairments affecting gait

Where it is running

• REVAL Rehabilitation Research Center, University of Hasselt — Diepenbeek, Belgium (enrolling)

Full record on ClinicalTrials.gov

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