Welcome to the Other Brain and Nervous System Studies Page

DURATION: each study session will take up to 5 hours

AGE: 18-65

VISITS: up to 27

LOCATION: Carnegie Mellon University and/or the University of Pittsburgh

COMPENSATION: up to $2500

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.

Narrative video game for patients with dementia - Play-Test

Do you care for someone with dementia? If so, you may be eligible to participate in a research study to develop a new, interactive tool/game to improve decision making during serious illness. You would test the tool, providing your thoughts so we can refine it appropriately. Compensation provided. All study activities are completed remotely using video-conferencing technology.

Alzheimer's Disease

Healthy Aging

LOCATION: Virtually or in-person (Oakland)

DURATION: 30 minutes

VISITS: 1

COMPENSATION: $50

BEHOLD - Parkinson's Disease with memory concerns

Have you been diagnosed with Parkinson’s Disease with memory or thinking problems that are impacting your daily life? 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 study using MRI and PET scans to look at brain activity.

DURATION: up to 2 years

Parkinson's Disease

AGE: 55-90

COMPENSATION: up to $950 and transportation is provided

NO IN-PERSON VISITS

Adaptive Trial Scheduling in Naming Treatment for Aphasia

Are you 18 or older diagnosed with chronic aphasia? You may be able to participate in a research study evaluating novel anomia treatment to improve long-term retention. Compensation is provided.

Stroke

DURATION: Up to 12 months

VISITS: Telehealth sessions

COMPENSATION: Up to $1,800

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

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

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

AGE: 18 and up

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

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

AGE: 18 and up

VISITS: At least 1 visit

LOCATION: University of Pittsburgh and VA Pittsburgh Healthcare System

COMPENSATION: NONE

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.