Creatine for Parkinson's Disease - Phase III trial

The National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS), NIH institute yesterday¹ launched double-blind, placebo-controlled, phase III study to learn if the nutritional supplement creatine can slow the progression of Parkinson's disease (PD). Currently there is no treatment that has been shown to slow the progression of PD. It is one of the largest PD clinical trials to date, enrolling 1720 people with early-stage PD at 51 medical centers in the United States and Canada. Till date, creatine is not an approved therapeutic agent for PD or any other condition. Earlier studies² suggest its ability to improve exercise performance possibly by improving mitochondrial function and potential neuroprotection by antioxidant property. Creatine - a widely used dietary supplement has been investigated as a possible therapeutic approach for the treatment of muscular, neurological, neuromuscular diseases and neuroprotective effects.³ Participation in this study lasts a minimum of 5 years and includes at least 9 follow-up clinic visits and at least 3 telephone calls.

Reference:
1. NET-PD LS-1 Creatine in Parkinson’s Disease | NCT00449865
2. PubMed search using keywords: creatine parkinson
3. Creatine and treatment of muscular diseases | Wikipedia.org