Can a simple drug help people with fluid on the brain walk better?
NCT ID NCT04975269
First seen Jun 27, 2026 · Last updated Jun 27, 2026
Summary
This study tested whether the drug acetazolamide can improve walking in people with normal pressure hydrocephalus (NPH), a condition where excess fluid in the brain causes trouble walking, thinking, and bladder control. Fifty adults with NPH were randomly assigned to receive either acetazolamide or a placebo until they had shunt surgery. The main goal was to see if the drug improved gait function.
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Study facts
What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.
- Phase
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Phase 2
Tests whether the treatment actually works, and watches for side effects, in a larger group.
- Participants
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50 people
The number who actually took part.
- Started
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Feb 2022
- Finished
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Apr 2026
- Lead sponsor
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Other sponsor
The registry's catch-all category, for sponsors it does not file as a company, a government agency, or a research network.
Who can take part
This study's own entry requirements. Only the study team can say for certain whether you qualify.
- Ages
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50 to 82 years
- Sex
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Anyone
- Healthy volunteers
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Not accepted
This study is not open to healthy volunteers. The entry requirements below say who it is open to.
Show the full entry requirements Hide the full entry requirements
Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.
Inclusion Criteria: 1. Diagnosis of idiopathic normal pressure hydrocephalus according to international guidelines 2. Age ≥ 50 years and ≤ 82 years 3. Cognitive function with Mini-Mental State Examination \> 20 points or cognitive domain of iNPH scale ≥ 30 points. 4. MRI image characteristic of normal pressure hydrocephalus, defined as callosal angle \< 90 degrees and dilated lateral ventricles or pattern of disproportionately enlarged subarachnoid space hydrocephalus (DESH). 5. Signed informed consent form Exclusion Criteria: 1. Exclusion criteria for MRI examination 2. Participation in another medical trial 3. Other disease likely to impact the symptoms of the patient 4. Wheelchair user or unable to walk without support 5. Reduced kidney function with GFR \< 50 6. Reduced liver function (increased INR or alanine transaminase concentrations in plasma elevated more than 1.5 times reference values) 7. Known heart failure 8. Low concentrations of electrolytes in blood plasma that, according to the investigator, prevents participation in the study 9. Angle-closure glaucoma 10. Allergy to acetazolamide, sulfonamides, or sulfonamide derivatives 11. Treatment with phenytoin, valproate, carbamazepine, lithium, oral anticoagulants, thiazide-diuretics, or acetylsalicylic acid \> 100 mg/day 12. Inability to swallow capsules of the same size as the investigational medicinal products (will be tested using empty capsules when the patient is asked to participate in the study) 13. Average walking time for the three walking tests \< 10.5 seconds for men and \< 11.5 seconds for women. 14. Average walking time for the three walking tests \> 50 seconds 15. Inability to comply with the study treatment independently, and a concurrent lack of individuals to help the patient comply with the treatment during the study period 16. Fertile woman without highly effective contraception. A Fertile woman will be tested with pregnancy test before inclusion is possible.
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Conditions
The condition(s) this trial relates to.
As listed by the trial registrant
The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.
Contacts and locations
Locations
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Department of Clinical Neurophysiology, Neurosurgery and Neurology, Uppsala University Hospital
Uppsala, Sweden
More trials for these conditions
Other studies related to the condition(s) this trial covers.
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