Research Projects

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Email: mhicare@uq.edu.au

Phone: 07 3346 5577

This project aims to advance knowledge in the phenomelogy of anxiety, develop a new inventory to evaluate Parkinson’s disease specific anxiety, and maximise treatment of anxiety for persons with Parkinson’s disease.

Prevalence and characteristics of anxiety in Parkinson’s disease

This cohort study examines the prevalence and characteristics of anxiety in Parkinson’s disease to identify subtypes, and the relationship between anxiety and cognitive dysfunction in Parkinson’s disease. The study further examines the atypical forms of anxiety in Parkinson’s disease observed in a quarter of all patients.

Parkinson’s disease specific anxiety inventory (PDSAI)

Patients with Parkinson’s disease can experience anxiety specifically related to the disease. Such disease specific anxiety can be related to motor and non-motor symptoms as well as complications of Parkinson’s disease medication such as dyskinesias or on/off effects. Our research has published disease specific anxiety symptoms. The newly developed Parkinson’s diseases Specific Anxiety Inventory (PDSAI) is currently undergoing validation studies.

Email: pd.research@uq.edu.au

Phone: 07 3346 5577

We have developed interventions including virtual reality, wireless head mounted displays, telehealth video conferencing to deliver psychotherapy, and wearable devices (smart watches) for biofeedback. Testing of new psychotherapeutic packages in clinical trials are currently underway. Our studies include older persons with varying degrees of cognitive impairment, Parkinson’s disease patients and residential aged care facilities.

Virtual reality assisted anxiety treatment for Parkinson’s disease and dementia (VRAPD)

There is a high prevalence on anxiety in persons with progressive neurodegenerative diseases such as Parkinson’s disease and dementia. This program of research aims to develop a number of technology assisted manualised psychotherapeutic packages to effectively treat anxiety in such vulnerable groups. Interventions for anxiety in older persons are also developed within the framework of establishing a stepwise anxiety treatment model to maximise mental health treatment for older adults and vulnerable populations.

Media

Virtual reality frees the mind

This program of research aims to identifying underpinning neural mechanisms and develop novel emotional paradigms to identify markers to guide the response to therapeutic interventions. We use various neuroimaging methodology such as EEG, fMRI, and DTI. Our studies also focus on understanding the link between emotional and cognitive processing. Persons with anxiety and depression are at risk of developing neurodegenerative diseases such as dementia and Parkinson’s disease later in life. Our studies examine the neurobiology of anxiety and depression that increase vulnerability to neurodegeneration.

Example paradigms designed and tested by our group:

Affective priming

Figure (adapted from Dissanayaka et al. Neuropsychology 2017, Vol 31, No. 6, 585-595):  Automatic affective priming task design. Prime–target word pairs were presented congruently (negative–negative or neutral–neutral) or incongruently (negative–neutral or neutral–negative) at a stimulus onset asynchrony (SOA) of 250 ms. Participants were asked to evaluate the valence of the target word with a button press while ERPs were recorded simultaneously.

Email: pd.research@uq.edu.au

Phone: 07 3346 5577

Using structural and functional imaging, our studies focus on identifying brain networks associated with various cognitive processes. We conduct resting state and task dependent fMRI studies. Our goal is to establish markers for early detection of dementia and to assist with discovery of therapeutics. Our studies target the discovery of impaired neural networks at early stages, and include persons with mild cognitive impairment (MCI), who are at risk of developing dementia..

Resting state functional networks

Attentional network

Attention Network Test (ANT) is employed to identify impaired attentional networks in persons with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) in Parkinson’s disease. The study focuses on three types of attention: (i) alerting (ii) orienting, and (iii) executive, and maps neural networks altered in MCI.

Semantic processors

Semantic fluency and phonemic fluency paradigms are employed to investigate impaired networks at early stages for cognitive impairment.  

Memory and hippocampal subregions      

Episodic memory impairment is examined in Parkinson’s disease patients using a specialised paradigm to identify hippocampal subregions.

Email: pd.research@uq.edu.au

We use established cognitive and emotional paradigms to maximise treatment for anxiety and cognitive impairment.

Imaging and anxiety treatment

Precision medicine targeted framework is used to maximise anxiety treatment outcomes for older persons and those with neurodegenerative disease. Established anxiety paradigms guided with neuroimaging and biofeedback are used to identify potential responders and non-responders for person centred targeted psychotherapy interventions in clinical trials.

Email: pd.research@uq.edu.au

Phone: 07 3346 5577

Repurposed drug trial for memory impairment

Guided by the hippocampal subregion activation observed in fMRI neuroimaging, this study trials repurposed drugs to reduce memory impairment. First trial will be conducted in persons with Parkinson’s disease.

Email: pd.research@uq.edu.au

Phone: 07 33465577