Rehabilitation of Everyday Memory Impairment in Parkinson Disease: A Pilot Study

Cognitive impairment is common among non-demented individuals with Parkinson disease (PD)
and is a significant source of disability and reduced quality of life. Unfortunately, there
are no successful interventions to address these impairments. Prospective memory impairment
is a particularly functionally- and clinically-relevant problem in PD. The investigator's
project will determine if a targeted intervention strategy improves PD participants'
prospective memory. The investigator will use a randomized controlled design and a
laboratory-based assessment of prospective memory to test the effect of the strategy in a
controlled environment. The investigator will also see if PD participants, with support from
an occupational therapist (OT), can generalize the strategy to their complex, real-world
environments and tasks. Our goal is to improve PD patients' everyday prospective memory so
they can successfully perform desired activities and roles.

Inclusion Criteria:

- Participants will be males and females over age 50 who meet criteria for idiopathic
typical PD, are Hoehn & Yahr39 stage I-III (mild-moderate disease) and are treated
with levodopa/carbidopa.

Exclusion Criteria:

- Possible dementia,

- treatment with certain medications that interfere with cognition (e.g.,
anticholinergics),

- change in medications over the study period, other neurological disorders, brain
surgery (e.g., STN DBS),

- history of psychotic disorder or significant current psychiatric disorder, or any
condition that would interfere with testing (e.g., vision problems).