The identification of new research initiatives, the creation of innovative and unique research projects and the nurturing of new investigators and coordinators are the cornerstones of the Parkinson Study Group's collaborative efforts and are essential to our goal of advancing knowledge.
The Scientific Review Committee (SRC) will review all research proposals coming to the PSG. A complete list of the SRC current committee members can be found on the PSG Overview web page. The Mentoring Committee (MC) reviews proposals submitted for the Mentored Clinical Research Award program. A complete list of the MC current committee members can be found on the PSG Overview web page.
The documents below establish the procedures and assist with
the planning for new study proposals to be evaluated, reviewed and considered
for approval as formal Parkinson Study Group projects. The same documents are to be used when applying for the Mentored Clinical Research Award.
The PSG encourages projects which include retrospective analyses of PSG clinical trial databases. We have compiled a list of all the PSG databases that are available. Please see PSG Database Inventory for detailed information. More specific study-related information can be found on the Database Inventory Assessments Spreadsheet.
Proposing investigators should review prior PSG studies to see if their question has already been addressed and explain why their project should go forward if it appears similar to another. Please see PSG Proposals approved/awarded for detailed information.
To review examples of projects that retrospectively analyzed PSG clinical trial databases, please see the following publications:
- Factors predictive of the need for levodopa therapy in early, untreated
Parkinson's disease.
- Levodopa
improves motor function without impairing cognition in mild non-demented
Parkinson’s disease patients.
- Freezing of gait in PD: Prospective assessment in the DATATOP cohort.
- Placebo-associated
improvements in motor function: Comparison of subjective and objective
sections of the UPDRS in early Parkinson’s
disease.
- Test-retest
reliability of the Unified Parkinson’s Disease
Rating Scale in patients with early Parkinson’s disease: Results
from a multicenter clinical trial.
- Quality
of life in early Parkinson’s disease: Impact of dyskinesias
and motor fluctuations.
- Survival in Parkinson disease: Thirteen-year follow-up of the DATATOP cohort.
Below are two examples of successful mentored research award proposals:
- PSG Mentored Clinical Research Award: “A family study of LRRK2 mutations: Establishing evaluation and screening methods” by Connie Marras, MD, Morton and Gloria Shulman, Movement Disorders Centre, Toronto Western Hospital, Toronto, Ontario.
- PSG Mentored Clinical Research Award: "A Pilot Study of Balance and Vitamin D in Persons with PD" by Amie L. Peterson, MD, Assistant Professor, Oregon Health & Science University.
For questions about the Parkinson Study Group Toolkit, or for problems accessing the PDF files or hyperlinks, please email Roseanna Battista.