Welcome to the Other Brain and Nervous System Studies Page

Other Physical Disability

AGE: 55 and older

DURATION: 1 year

VISITS: 4-5

LOCATION: Bakery Square – East Liberty

COMPENSATION: $125-$150

Smartphone Self-Care for Chronic Conditions

Do you have spina bifida, spinal cord injury, traumatic brain injury, or cerebral palsy? Researchers at Pitt are looking for adults with these chronic conditions to give feedback on new smartphone apps designed to make self-care more manageable. Compensation provided.

Assistive Devices

Chromosomal Disorders

Mobility Aids

And 2 more areas

LOCATION: Multiple clinic locations in East End, or at home

DURATION: Varies

COMPENSATION: $25 per completed session

NO IN-PERSON VISITS

Smart Phone Apps Study II

Do you have a diagnosis of Spina Bifida, Spinal Cord Injury, or Cerebral Palsy? If so, you may be eligible to participate in a study to help develop and evaluate an app suite to support and manage self-care. Compensation may be provided.

Assistive Devices

Chromosomal Disorders

Mobility Aids

VISITS: Multiple visits/sessions

And 3 more areas

AGE: 18 - 99

LOCATION: Either in the office, your home, or by phone

COMPENSATION: -Participants in the mHealth group will not receive monetary compensation but will receive free use of the smartphone for the duration of the study. Participants in the control group will receive $25.00 for full completion of each study session, or $100.00 if they complete the entire study.

Mood and Personality Research Study

Have you been diagnosed with borderline personality disorder (BPD) or experience intense emotions and mood swings? If you are between the ages of 18-45, you may be able to take part in a research study to help learn more about the emotional experiences of people who have symptoms of borderline personality disorder. This study involves interviews and neuroimaging assessments via fMRI and EEG.

Other Mental Health and Behavior

AGE: 18 - 45

VISITS: Multiple

LOCATION: Virtual (Zoom), Bellefield Towers (North Oakland) and UPMC Presbyterian

COMPENSATION: Up to $680 and reimbursed for transportation/parking expenses at the in-person visits.

CHARM Study

Are you a relatively healthy adult between the ages of 40 and 59? If so, you may be able to participate in a research study to help learn more about how the brain relates to heart health. Compensation provided.

DURATION: About 6 hours

VISITS: 2 visits

LOCATION: Old Engineering Hall and Bridge MRI Center - Oakland

COMPENSATION: up to $130 + parking or transportation expenses.

NO IN-PERSON VISITS

MyPaTH Story Booth 2.0

Interested in sharing your story about health, illness, or research? Patients and caregivers are needed to participate in a research study to help learn more about topics that are important to you and that may improve health and health care. Participation involves one 45-minute session that takes place over the phone. Eligible participants must be able to read and understand English.

DURATION: 45 minutes

VISITS: 1 visit or phone call

LOCATION: By phone

COMPENSATION: NONE

Assistive Robots for ALS

Are you age 18 or older and diagnosed with ALS? You may be eligible for a research study to test a new robot with an arm and a mobile base from your home, in our lab, or anywhere! The purpose of this study is to evaluate how well individuals with ALS can operate a mobile assistive robot (called Stretch) using a web-based interface to perform several functional tasks. Compensation is provided.

DURATION: 2.5 to 3 hours

AGE: 18 and older

VISITS: 1 (or 2 if preferred)

LOCATION: Your home, the study lab (Bakery Square) or from a location of your choice

COMPENSATION: $125

MenoBrain: A Women’s Midlife Brain Health Study

Are you a healthy woman 42-52 years of age? You may be eligible for a research study designed to look at women’s brain health over midlife. This study involves at least 7 visits to the laboratory over 2 years. Compensation is provided.

Healthy Aging

Healthy Volunteer

Women's Health

AGE: 42-52

SEX: Female

DURATION: 2 years

VISITS: at least 7

COMPENSATION: Up to $575 and bus fares and parking fees will also be provided for lab visits.

BEHOLD - Lewy Body Disease (Dementia with Lewy Bodies)

Have you been diagnosed with Lewy Body Disease (Dementia with Lewy Bodies)? You may be eligible for a research study to determine how bioenergetic changes in the brain occur and contribute to progression of Lewy Body Dementia and other neurodegenerative diseases. This is a brain imaging research study using MRI and PET scans to look at a certain kind of brain activity. Compensation provided.

Alzheimer's Disease

DURATION: up to 2 years

AGE: 55-90

VISITS: varies

COMPENSATION: up to $950 and transportation is provided

Autism Center of Excellence ACE - 18-65 Autistic or have an autism diagnosis

Do you have an autism diagnosis? You may be eligible for a research study focused on suicide and mental health in autistic and non-autistic adults. Participants will answer questions about their thoughts, feelings, and experiences as well as use different kinds of technology (physiological sensors, fMRI) to learn how the body and brain react in different situations. Compensation is provided.

Other Mental Health and Behavior

AGE: 18-65

DURATION: up to 12 months

VISITS: 1-2 in-person visits

LOCATION: UPMC Presbyterian, Sterling Plaza (both in Oakland) and Online

COMPENSATION: up to $735

Enroll-HD

Are you the spouse, caregiver, or family member of someone affected by Huntington’s disease (HD)? If so, you may be able to participate in a research study that is collecting data in an effort to improve understanding and treatment of Huntington’s disease (HD).

Huntington Disease

VISITS: Once per year

LOCATION: Kaufmann Medical Building Oakland

COMPENSATION: Travel Reimbursement

Physiology of normal and disordered hearing- Hearing loss

The Systems Neuroscience of Auditory Perception Lab is seeking participants aged 18+ with hearing loss for a research study on how our ears and brains help us communicate in situations with background sounds, like crowded restaurants and busy streets. Participation involves visits for hearing testing and brainwave measurements, and completion of online tasks at home. Compensation is provided.

Hearing Loss

DURATION: not more than 3 hours/visit

AGE: 18 and older

VISITS: 2-4 visits to the lab, and an at home component

COMPENSATION: $16/hour

REGISTRY

VA Pittsburgh Healthcare System Audiology and Speech-Language Pathology Research Registry— Adults with Aphasia

Do you have aphasia caused by a stroke or other brain injury? If so, you may be able to join a research registry to help learn more about speech and language problems and to identify volunteers for future communication disorders research studies. There is no compensation for joining this registry, but individual research studies you may be contacted about in the future may offer compensation.

Other Injuries/Injury Prevention

Speech and Language Disorders

Stroke

VISITS: At least 1 visit

LOCATION: University of Pittsburgh and VA Pittsburgh Healthcare System

COMPENSATION: NONE

HCP2 – Connectomics in Brain Aging (CoBrA) Study

Are you 50 years of age or older? You may be able to participate in a brain imaging study. We want to look at how your environment changes the way your brain works as you age.

Alzheimer's Disease

Healthy Aging

Healthy Volunteer

AGE: 50 years old and older

DURATION: 6 years

VISITS: 3 visits every two years

COMPENSATION: up to $300

Dementia with Lewy Bodies Consortium (DLBC)

Do you have diagnosed or suspected dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB), mild cognitive impairment that may progress to DLB, or Parkinson’s disease dementia? If so, you may be able to participate in a research study to help learn more about DLB and find better ways to identify and treat the disease in the future. Compensation is provided.

DURATION: Up to 10 years

Parkinson's Disease

AGE: 40 - 90

VISITS: 12-20 visits

LOCATION: UPMC Montefiore Hospital, UPMC Presbyterian Hospital, & Kaufmann Medical Building

COMPENSATION: Varies From $50 to $200 per visit over the 10 year study duration + parking reimbursement

PROMOTE Study

Do you have a diagnosis of multiple sclerosis or a related disorder? If so, you may be able to participate in a research study to help better understand the factors that explain the differences among multiple sclerosis (MS) patients. Study involves answering questionnaires, reviewing medical records and participating in other optional research activities.