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Mild Cognitive ImpairmentMEDICNCT04000984

Beneficial Effects of Mindfulness-based Training on Neuropsychological Outcomes in Mild Cognitive Impairment

A study testing Mindfulness Based Training (MBT) Program and Cognitive Rehabilitation Training in people with Mild Cognitive Impairment, run by Singapore General Hospital at 1 site in Singapore.

Completed

Finished. The study has ended and is not enrolling. Results may be posted on the official record.

Official record
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Trial summary

This study evaluates the effects of Mindfulness-based Interventions (MBI) on the neuropsychological profile of individuals with mild cognitive impairment (MCI). It will also investigate changes in fMRI activity, such as resting-state functional connectivity networks and changes in activity in attention networks in… Read more about this study

Who is it for?
Ages 45 to 75 years
Conditions the study is for
Mild Cognitive Impairment
What is being tested?
Mindfulness Based Training (MBT) Program and Cognitive Rehabilitation Training
Could I receive a placebo?
No, everyone receives an active treatment
How many people
81 participants
Where
1 siteSingapore
Study dates
1 Jan 2016to 1 Dec 2019
Phase
Interventional
Are there results?
None posted in the registry

Key requirements

Who can take part, as listed by the sponsor. Only the study team can confirm whether you are eligible, so take this list to your doctor.

  • Ages 45 to 75 years
  • All sexes
  • No healthy volunteers
  • Adult, Older adult

Who may be able to join

  • Fluent in English
  • Mild Cognitive Impairment: Fulfill Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders version five (DSM-V) diagnostic criteria for Minor Neurocognitive Disorder
  • MMSE score = 20-30
  • Clinical Dementia Rating Score (CDR) = 0.5
  • Age: ≤75 years

Who cannot join

  • Presence of major neurological conditions such as epilepsy, stroke, Parkinson's Disease and or brain injury
  • Presence of major psychiatric conditions such as major depression or schizophrenia
  • Unsuitability for fMRI scanning (e.g. pacemakers, metallic implants, claustrophobia)
  • Unable to give or no consent available
  • Left-handed participants may take part in the study but will not undergo fMRI scanning

Trial locations and contacts

1 site in 1 country.

Singapore1 site

  • Singapore General Hospital

    Singapore, 169608

Other trials in Singapore

About this study

Official title: Investigating the Beneficial Effects of Mindfulness-based Training on Neuropsychological Outcomes in Mild Cognitive Impairment

This study evaluates the effects of Mindfulness-based Interventions (MBI) on the neuropsychological profile of individuals with mild cognitive impairment (MCI). It will also investigate changes in fMRI activity, such as resting-state functional connectivity networks and changes in activity in attention networks in task-related fMRI using graph theory analysis after Mindfulness-based Interventions. Participants will be randomly assigned to receive either the Mindfulness-Based Intervention, Cognitive Rehabilitation Training or Treatment as Usual as the passive control group comparison.

Read the detailed description

As the population of Singapore ages rapidly, cognitive decline associated with both normal aging and disease is becoming a frequently encountered health challenge. In our proposed study, we will investigate the effects of mindfulness-based interventions (MBI), which have shown significant promise in halting and even reversing age-related cognitive impairment. MBI enhances the quality and frequency of mindfulness, defined as a mental state achieved by focusing one's attention and awareness on the present moment, while calmly acknowledging and accepting one's feelings, thoughts, and bodily sensations. In this study, we will administer a standardized MBI program or Cognitive Rehabilitation Therapy to a group of 60 patients diagnosed with mild cognitive impairment (MCI), a condition marked by deficits in language, memory and attention that often leads to dementia; an additional 30 patients will be assigned to the control group. There will be 3 runs with 30 persons per run; each group will have 10 randomly assigned participants. By comparing the 3 groups across the 3 runs, we seek to test the following hypotheses: 1) MBI will result in significantly greater improvements in neuropsychological testing outcomes across multiple cognitive domains, including attention, memory, language and processing speed, 2) MBI will strengthen cortical connectivity as measured by functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), and 3) MBI will lead to changes in fMRI activation on a test of facets of attention. Neuropsychological testing will take place in SGH, while fMRI and EEG scanning will take place in the Center for Cognitive Neuroscience at Duke-NUS. Both the MBI and CRT will be facilitated by trained personnel. Our proposed experiment comprises one of the most comprehensive interrogations of the effects of MBT on patients to date, and if successful, could rapidly translate into a program with both clinical and economic impact.

Being tested
Mindfulness Based Training (MBT) Program, Cognitive Rehabilitation Training
Keywords
Mindfulness, Cognitive Rehabilitation
Medical subject headings
Cognitive Dysfunction

What participants receive

What participants receive. In a randomised study each person is assigned to one group by chance.

  • Mindfulness Based Training (MBT) ProgramBehavioural

    Also called MBT

    Participants in the MBT program will meet weekly for 8 weeks. Each session will last one-and-a-half hours. Mindfulness, defined as caring moment-to-moment awareness, will be cultivated through the teaching and formal practice of sitting and walking meditation, body scan, and mindful movement (e.g. yoga). Participants will also be taught how to practice mindfulness informally when eating, engaging in pleasurable activities and through interactions with others. Participants will be encouraged to practice approximately 30 minutes a day, and will be provided handouts as well as guided audio recordings of formal practices taught in session to aid their practice at home.

  • Cognitive Rehabilitation TrainingBehavioural

    Also called CRT

    Participants in the CRT program will meet weekly for 8 weeks. Each session will last one-and-a-half hours. The 8 week-program will consist of the following components: (i) identifying and working on at least one personal rehabilitation goal related to everyday life that is associated with cognitive difficulties; (ii) reviewing and building on the use of practical memory strategies, and or introducing and teaching the use of a new strategy or memory aid; (iii) introducing techniques for learning new information and associations, identifying the preferred strategy, and encouraging the application of this strategy in daily life; (iv) providing practice in maintaining attention and concentration; and (v) exploring current ways of coping with stress and anxiety as well as providing relaxation techniques to help aid with coping (Clare, 2007). Participants will be provided with instructional hand-outs as well as logs to record, monitor and evaluate their progress.

Study groups in NCT04000984
Study groupRoleWhat they receive
Mindfulness-Based InterventionExperimentalParticipants in this arm will complete baseline and follow-up visits (approximately 3-months after) and Mid-intervention safety checks. They will attend the in the Mindfulness-Based Training program that will meet weekly for 8 weeks. Each session will last approximately one-and-a-half hours.
Receives: Behavioral: Mindfulness Based Training (MBT) Program
Cognitive Rehabilitation TrainingActive comparatorParticipants in this arm will complete baseline and follow-up visits (approximately 3-months after) and Mid-intervention safety checks. They will attend the Cognitive Rehabilitation program that will meet weekly for 8 weeks. Each session will last one-and-a-half hours.
Receives: Behavioral: Cognitive Rehabilitation Training
Treatment As UsualNo interventionParticipants in the Treatment As Usual group were only required to attend baseline and follow-up visits (approximately 3-months after) and Mid-intervention safety checks. Participants in this group will not receive an intervention for the duration of the study. They received treatment as usual which is 6 months to 1-year follow up visits with their attending neurologist of psychologist.

What is being measured

The primary outcome is the main question the study is designed to answer.

  1. Change in Attention

    The RBANS Attention Index is a composite of the Digit Span and Coding subtests. This index is a measure of simple auditory registration and visual scanning and processing speed. Low scores on this index indicate difficulties with basic attention processes and speed of information processing.

    Measured: 10 minutes

  2. Change in Immediate Memory

    The RBANS Immediate Memory Index is composite of the learning (immediate) trials of the Story Memory and List Learning subtests. This index is a measure of initial encoding and learning complex and simple verbal information. Low scores on this index indicate difficulties with verbal learning.

    Measured: 10 minutes

  3. Change in Delayed Memory

    The RBANS Delayed Memory Index is a composite of the Story Memory Recall, List Learning Recall, List Learning Recognition, and Figure Recall subtests. This index is a measure of delayed recall and recognition for verbal and visual information. Low scores on this index indicate difficulties with recognition and retrieval of information from long-term memory stores.

    Measured: 30 minutes

  4. Change in Processing Speed: Colour Trails 1 and 2

    Speed of cognitive processing and executive functioning is measured by the total time taken to complete each task.

    Measured: 10 minutes

  5. Chang in Mindfulness Awareness and Attention Scores

    Dispositional Mindfulness and present-centered attention-awareness in everyday experience is measured with this scale. This instrument focused on the absence of attention to and awareness of present experience, and operationalized mindfulness as a single construct.

    Measured: An average of 3 months

Secondary outcomes (5)

  1. Change in Subjective Quality of Life: Short-Form 36

    Short-Form 36 (SF-36) is a 36-item self-report survey of health, including physical and mental health, with 8 scaled scores, each ranging from a minimum of 0 to max 100. Total score is the mean of all the subscales.

    Physical functioning : 10 items; Role functioning/physical : 4 items; Role emotional: 3 items; Energy/fatigue: 4 items; Mental Health: 5 items; Social functioning: 2 items; Body pain: 2 items; General health : 5 items; Reported health transition: 1 item.

    Measured: An average of 3 months

  2. Change in Subjective measures of Sleep quality: Insomnia Severity Index

    Insomnia Severity Index (ISI) evaluates an individual's level of tendency for insomnia on a 7-item questionnaire, scoring in total from 0 to 28. Scores above 15 indicates moderate severity of clinical insomnia while scores above 22 are indicative of severe clinical insomnia. ISI internal consistency was excellent for population samples both in the community and clinical samples as well, (Cronbach α of 0.90 and 0.91 respectively).

    Measured: Two weeks

  3. Change in Subjective measures of Sleep quality: Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index Score

    Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index Score (PSQI) is a 19-item self-rated questionnaire for evaluating subjective sleep quality over the previous month. The PSQI has a sensitivity of 89.6% and specificity of 86.5% for identifying cases with sleep disorder, using a cut-off score of 5.

    The first 4 items are open questions, whereas items 5 to 19 are rated on a 4-point Likert scale. Individual items scores yield 7 components. A total score, ranging from 0 to 21, is obtained by adding the 7 component scores. A score of 5 and above suggests poor sleep quality. A decrease in PSQI score following intervention would reflect and improvement of sleep quality.

    Measured: One month

  4. Imaging measures (structural): change in orbitofrontal cortex volume

    The change in the volume of orbitofrontal cortex (OFC) is assessed through structural MRI brain scans - Participants will have their baseline fMRI scan before the start of their participation in the intervention and after the end of the intervention.

    Measured: 6 minutes

  5. Change in functional imaging measures: Resting state

    During two rsfMRI scans, subjects are imaged over several minutes while their eyes are open, but without performing any explicit task. The resting state scan will show only a fixation cross on the screen in order to minimize the cognitive processing involved while decreasing head movement and sleepiness in the scanner.

    Mindfulness predisposition is measured with the use of traditional connectivity analysis as well as a newer method: graph theory analysis for task ready state in Dynamic Functional Connectivity. These data are extracted by decomposing the time-varying signal during resting periods into independent, intrinsically connected networks.

    Measured: 10 minutes

Timeline

From the start of the study to its completion; the mark is today. Estimated dates are the sponsor’s plan.

  1. First posted27 Jun 2019
  2. Study start1 Jan 2016
  3. Primary completion1 Dec 2019
  4. Study completion1 Dec 2019

Resources

More details

For doctors and researchers: how the study is designed, who runs it, and its registry IDs.

Study design
Study type
Interventional
Phase
Phase N/A
Primary purpose
Treatment
Allocation
Randomised
Intervention model
Factorial
Model description
Participants will be randomly assigned to receive either the treatment intervention, Mindfulness-Based Intervention, compared against an active control, the Cognitive Rehabilitation Training in parallel and both groups will also be compared against a passive control group, the Treatment as Usual, where no intervention takes place.
Masking
Double blind
Who is masked
Investigator, Outcomes assessor
Enrolment
81 participants (actual)
IDs, dates and publications
ClinicalTrials.gov ID
NCT04000984
Sponsor's protocol ID
2015/3149
Acronym
MEDIC
Status last verified
Mar 2020
First submitted
6 May 2019
Last updated
27 Mar 2020
Results posted
No
Data monitoring committee
Yes
FDA-regulated drug
No
FDA-regulated device
No

Publications

  • Brier MR, Thomas JB, Fagan AM, Hassenstab J, Holtzman DM, Benzinger TL, Morris JC, Ances BM. Functional connectivity and graph theory in preclinical Alzheimer's disease. Neurobiol Aging. 2014 Apr;35(4):757-68. doi: 10.1016/j.neurobiolaging.2013.10.081. Epub 2013 Oct 18.

    PubMed 24216223

  • Bullmore E, Sporns O. Complex brain networks: graph theoretical analysis of structural and functional systems. Nat Rev Neurosci. 2009 Mar;10(3):186-98. doi: 10.1038/nrn2575. Epub 2009 Feb 4.

    PubMed 19190637

  • Dai Z, He Y. Disrupted structural and functional brain connectomes in mild cognitive impairment and Alzheimer's disease. Neurosci Bull. 2014 Apr;30(2):217-32. doi: 10.1007/s12264-013-1421-0. Epub 2014 Apr 15.

    PubMed 24733652

  • Dinges DF, Pack F, Williams K, Gillen KA, Powell JW, Ott GE, Aptowicz C, Pack AI. Cumulative sleepiness, mood disturbance, and psychomotor vigilance performance decrements during a week of sleep restricted to 4-5 hours per night. Sleep. 1997 Apr;20(4):267-77.

    PubMed 9231952

  • Fox MD, Raichle ME. Spontaneous fluctuations in brain activity observed with functional magnetic resonance imaging. Nat Rev Neurosci. 2007 Sep;8(9):700-11. doi: 10.1038/nrn2201.

    PubMed 17704812

  • Fox MD, Snyder AZ, Vincent JL, Raichle ME. Intrinsic fluctuations within cortical systems account for intertrial variability in human behavior. Neuron. 2007 Oct 4;56(1):171-84. doi: 10.1016/j.neuron.2007.08.023.

    PubMed 17920023

  • Gard T, Holzel BK, Lazar SW. The potential effects of meditation on age-related cognitive decline: a systematic review. Ann N Y Acad Sci. 2014 Jan;1307:89-103. doi: 10.1111/nyas.12348.

    PubMed 24571182

  • Gauthier S, Reisberg B, Zaudig M, Petersen RC, Ritchie K, Broich K, Belleville S, Brodaty H, Bennett D, Chertkow H, Cummings JL, de Leon M, Feldman H, Ganguli M, Hampel H, Scheltens P, Tierney MC, Whitehouse P, Winblad B; International Psychogeriatric Association Expert Conference on mild cognitive impairment. Mild cognitive impairment. Lancet. 2006 Apr 15;367(9518):1262-70. doi: 10.1016/S0140-6736(06)68542-5.

    PubMed 16631882

  • He X, Qin W, Liu Y, Zhang X, Duan Y, Song J, Li K, Jiang T, Yu C. Abnormal salience network in normal aging and in amnestic mild cognitive impairment and Alzheimer's disease. Hum Brain Mapp. 2014 Jul;35(7):3446-64. doi: 10.1002/hbm.22414. Epub 2013 Nov 12.

    PubMed 24222384

  • Huckans M, Hutson L, Twamley E, Jak A, Kaye J, Storzbach D. Efficacy of cognitive rehabilitation therapies for mild cognitive impairment (MCI) in older adults: working toward a theoretical model and evidence-based interventions. Neuropsychol Rev. 2013 Mar;23(1):63-80. doi: 10.1007/s11065-013-9230-9. Epub 2013 Mar 8.

    PubMed 23471631

  • Kilpatrick LA, Suyenobu BY, Smith SR, Bueller JA, Goodman T, Creswell JD, Tillisch K, Mayer EA, Naliboff BD. Impact of Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction training on intrinsic brain connectivity. Neuroimage. 2011 May 1;56(1):290-8. doi: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2011.02.034. Epub 2011 Feb 18.

    PubMed 21334442

  • Koepsell TD, Monsell SE. Reversion from mild cognitive impairment to normal or near-normal cognition: risk factors and prognosis. Neurology. 2012 Oct 9;79(15):1591-8. doi: 10.1212/WNL.0b013e31826e26b7. Epub 2012 Sep 26.

    PubMed 23019264

  • Lim J, Dinges DF. Sleep deprivation and vigilant attention. Ann N Y Acad Sci. 2008;1129:305-22. doi: 10.1196/annals.1417.002.

    PubMed 18591490

  • Manly JJ, Tang MX, Schupf N, Stern Y, Vonsattel JP, Mayeux R. Frequency and course of mild cognitive impairment in a multiethnic community. Ann Neurol. 2008 Apr;63(4):494-506. doi: 10.1002/ana.21326.

    PubMed 18300306

  • Mcbee, L. (2008) Mindfulness-based elder care. New York: Springer.

Questions about this trial

What is this clinical trial studying?

A study testing Mindfulness Based Training (MBT) Program and Cognitive Rehabilitation Training in people with Mild Cognitive Impairment, run by Singapore General Hospital at 1 site in Singapore.

The full registered description is in the About this study section and the official record.

Who may be eligible to take part?

The sponsor lists 5 inclusion and 5 exclusion criteria. Eligibility is decided by the study team after screening, so read the full criteria and contact a listed site.

Is this clinical trial currently recruiting?

The record says: finished, as of the sponsor's last update on 27 Mar 2020. Status can change between updates, so confirm with the study contact before making plans.

Where is the study taking place?

The record lists 1 site in Singapore. Whether a site is taking part right now should be confirmed with that site. See every site.

What are the possible benefits and risks?

They depend on the study and the treatment, and no study can promise a benefit. The study team explains the known risks during informed consent, before anyone joins; the record itself does not list them.

Are results available for this study?

The study is completed, but results are not available in the source record. That does not mean the treatment did or did not work.

How can a doctor refer a patient or contact the research team?

The record lists no contact. The official record names the sponsor, who can be asked directly. AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals.

What does the primary outcome measure?

Change in Attention (time frame: 10 minutes). The study lists 5 primary outcomes in all. It is what the study was designed to measure, not a finding.

Where can I read the original study information?

On the ClinicalTrials.gov record for NCT04000984, which also lists 18 linked publications.

Does a listing mean the treatment is approved or proven to work?

No. A listing means the study is registered. It does not show that the treatment is safe, works, or is approved by a regulator.

How often is this information updated?

AzTrials copies changed records from ClinicalTrials.gov every night and reloads the whole registry every week. The sponsor last updated this record on 27 Mar 2020.

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