Anorexia NervosaNCT04191720
Assessing the Impact of Weighted Blankets on Anxiety Among Inpatients With Anorexia Nervosa: a Study Protocol
A study testing Weighted blanket in people with Anorexia Nervosa and Avoidant/Restrictive Food Intake Disorder, run by Denver Health and Hospital Authority at 1 site in United States.
Trial summary
The aim of this study is to conduct a randomized control trial (RCT) to assess the efficacy of weighted blankets (WB), on anxiety for patients with severe anorexia nervosa (AN) and avoidant restrictive food intake disorder (ARFID) in an inpatient medical setting. Read more about this study
- Who is it for?
- Ages 18 to 89 years
- Conditions the study is for
- Anorexia Nervosa, Avoidant/Restrictive Food Intake Disorder, Anxiety
- What is being tested?
- Weighted blanket
- Could I receive a placebo?
- No, everyone receives an active treatment
- How many people
- 24 participants
- Where
- 1 siteUnited States
- Study dates
- 16 Nov 2018to 30 Nov 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 18 to 89 years
- All sexes
- No healthy volunteers
- Adult, Older adult
Who may be able to join
- Clinically diagnosed with AN-R, AN-BP, or ARFID upon admission (per Diagnostic and Statistical Manual-V criteria)
- Moderate/Major Anxiety per initial evaluation score using BAI
- OT assessment
Who cannot join
- Pregnant or nursing mothers
Trial locations and contacts
1 site in 1 country.
United States1 site
Denver Health and Hospital Authority
Denver, Colorado, 80204
About this study
Official title: A Randomized Control Trial to Assess the Impact of Weighted Blankets on Anxiety Among Inpatients With Anorexia Nervosa and Avoidant Restrictive Food Intake Disorder: a Study Protocol
The aim of this study is to conduct a randomized control trial (RCT) to assess the efficacy of weighted blankets (WB), on anxiety for patients with severe anorexia nervosa (AN) and avoidant restrictive food intake disorder (ARFID) in an inpatient medical setting. We hypothesize that using weighted blankets will reduce anxiety in these patient populations.
Read the detailed description
Anorexia nervosa (AN) has one of the highest mortality rates of any psychiatric disorder with anxiety being a common comorbidity. The standard of care for inpatient medical stabilization for patients diagnosed with AN is a multidisciplinary approach with emphasis on nutrition, psychotherapy, and medical management of complaints. Weighted blankets, an example of deep pressure stimulation, have been shown to reduce anxiety. However, not much is known about the effect of weighted blankets in the eating disorder population. Therefore, this randomized control trial (RCT) protocol outlines a study design for assessing the effect of weighted blankets on patients with AN.
A two-arm RCT design will be implemented for this study. A convenience sample of 24 patients will be enrolled with 12 patients in the control and intervention groups based on inclusion criteria. The control group will receive Denver Health's standard of care for patients admitted to its well-known medical stabilization unit for patients with extreme form of eating disorders, while the intervention group will receive both the standard of care and a weighted blanket. A mixed-design ANOVA will be performed to explore differences in the Beck's Anxiety Inventory and Subjective Units of Distress Scale between the intervention and control groups.
- Being tested
- Weighted blanket
- Keywords
- anorexia nervosa, weighted blankets, occupational therapy, anxiety, deep pressure stimulation, randomized control trial
- Medical subject headings
- Anorexia Nervosa, Avoidant Restrictive Food Intake Disorder, Anxiety Disorders
What participants receive
What participants receive. In a randomised study each person is assigned to one group by chance.
Weighted blanketOther
Patients that were randomly assigned to the intervention group received a weighted blanket to use at their will to reduce anxiety
| Study group | Role | What they receive |
|---|---|---|
| Control group | No intervention | The control group, or usual care group, will receive occupational therapy standard of care. Occupational therapy standard of care provide training, education, and therapeutic activities including relaxation strategies. These coping mechanisms are aimed at reducing the impact of anxiety on a patient's performance and participation in necessary and meaningful activities of daily living, refeeding and medical stabilization. Specifically, these interventions will include diaphragmatic and yogic breathing exercises, mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (MBCT) education and exercises, therapeutic restorative yoga activities, occupational therapy group participation, aromatherapy, identifying and promoting engagement in meaningful leisure activities, client-centered sensory diets to provide patients with consistent preferred sensory experiences, and individualized checklists and schedules to grade the self-initiation of effective coping strategies. |
| Weighted blanket group | Experimental | In the weighted blanket intervention group, patients will receive usual occupational therapy care in addition to a weighted blanket. The patient will be given an appropriately weighted blanket, within 1 lb +/- of 10% of body weight as measured on day of admission. Further, the occupational therapy will provide education to the patient on the use of the weighted blanket. Patients will be free to use the weighted blanket at their discretion, however, during meals, over the shoulders or head, and during ambulation, weighted blanket use will not be permitted. Receives: Other: Weighted blanket |
What is being measured
The primary outcome is the main question the study is designed to answer.
Anxiety reduction
Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI)
Measured: BAI measured during OT evaluation and through study completion, an average of 1 year
Anxiety reduction
Subjective Units of Distress Scale (SUDS)
Measured: SUDS are measured during OT evaluation and through study completion, an average of 3 weeks
Secondary outcomes (1)
Times weighted blankets are used
Ratio of times weighted blankets were used vs when not in use
Measured: Behaviors will be documented every 2 hours over the course of treatment, through study completion, an average of 3 weeks
Timeline
From the start of the study to its completion; the mark is today. Estimated dates are the sponsor’s plan.
- First posted10 Dec 2019
- Study start16 Nov 2018
- Primary completion19 Mar 2019
- Study completion30 Nov 2019
Resources
- Official record on ClinicalTrials.govThe registry entry this page is built from, with its full change history.
- Publications (22)Papers the sponsor has linked to this study.
- Other trials for Anorexia NervosaStudies of the same condition, open and under way.
- What the trial phases meanHow a treatment moves from first tests in people to approval.
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
- Supportive care
- Allocation
- Randomised
- Intervention model
- Parallel groups
- Masking
- None (open label)
- Enrolment
- 24 participants (actual)
Sponsor and investigators
- Lead sponsor
- Denver Health and Hospital Authority
- Sponsor type
- University, hospital or other
- Responsible party
- Principal investigator, Rachel Ohene, Denver Health and Hospital Authority
- Investigators
- Rachel Ohene, MOT, Principal investigator, Denver Health Hospital and Authority
IDs, dates and publications
- ClinicalTrials.gov ID
- NCT04191720
- Sponsor's protocol ID
- 18-0596
- Status last verified
- Dec 2019
- First submitted
- 3 Dec 2019
- Last updated
- 10 Dec 2019
- Results posted
- No
- Data monitoring committee
- No
- FDA-regulated drug
- No
- FDA-regulated device
- No
- Individual data sharing
- No: If we decide to share the data, we would ask researchers to reach out to the PI
Publications
Hoek HW. Incidence, prevalence and mortality of anorexia nervosa and other eating disorders. Curr Opin Psychiatry. 2006 Jul;19(4):389-94. doi: 10.1097/01.yco.0000228759.95237.78.
PubMed 16721169Hudson JI, Hiripi E, Pope HG Jr, Kessler RC. The prevalence and correlates of eating disorders in the National Comorbidity Survey Replication. Biol Psychiatry. 2007 Feb 1;61(3):348-58. doi: 10.1016/j.biopsych.2006.03.040. Epub 2006 Jul 3.
PubMed 16815322Khalsa SS, Portnoff LC, McCurdy-McKinnon D, Feusner JD. What happens after treatment? A systematic review of relapse, remission, and recovery in anorexia nervosa. J Eat Disord. 2017 Jun 14;5:20. doi: 10.1186/s40337-017-0145-3. eCollection 2017.
PubMed 28630708Paslakis G, Maas S, Gebhardt B, Mayr A, Rauh M, Erim Y. Prospective, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled phase IIa clinical trial on the effects of an estrogen-progestin combination as add-on to inpatient psychotherapy in adult female patients suffering from anorexia nervosa. BMC Psychiatry. 2018 Apr 10;18(1):93. doi: 10.1186/s12888-018-1683-1.
PubMed 29631553Nakai Y, Nin K, Noma S, Teramukai S, Wonderlich SA. Characteristics of Avoidant/Restrictive Food Intake Disorder in a Cohort of Adult Patients. Eur Eat Disord Rev. 2016 Nov;24(6):528-530. doi: 10.1002/erv.2476. Epub 2016 Sep 4.
PubMed 27594387Elliot ML. Figured world of eating disorders: occupations of illness. Can J Occup Ther. 2012 Feb;79(1):15-22. doi: 10.2182/cjot.2012.79.1.3.
PubMed 22439288Chakraborty K, Basu D. Management of anorexia and bulimia nervosa: An evidence-based review. Indian J Psychiatry. 2010 Apr;52(2):174-86. doi: 10.4103/0019-5545.64596.
PubMed 20838508Sebastian MR, Wiemann CM, Hergenroeder AC. Rate of weight gain as a predictor of readmission in adolescents with eating disorders. Int J Adolesc Med Health. 2019 Feb 26;33(4). doi: 10.1515/ijamh-2018-0228.
PubMed 30807289Altman SE, Shankman SA. What is the association between obsessive-compulsive disorder and eating disorders? Clin Psychol Rev. 2009 Nov;29(7):638-46. doi: 10.1016/j.cpr.2009.08.001. Epub 2009 Aug 16.
PubMed 19744759Nicely TA, Lane-Loney S, Masciulli E, Hollenbeak CS, Ornstein RM. Prevalence and characteristics of avoidant/restrictive food intake disorder in a cohort of young patients in day treatment for eating disorders. J Eat Disord. 2014 Aug 2;2(1):21. doi: 10.1186/s40337-014-0021-3. eCollection 2014.
PubMed 25165558Meier SM, Bulik CM, Thornton LM, Mattheisen M, Mortensen PB, Petersen L. Diagnosed Anxiety Disorders and the Risk of Subsequent Anorexia Nervosa: A Danish Population Register Study. Eur Eat Disord Rev. 2015 Nov;23(6):524-30. doi: 10.1002/erv.2402. Epub 2015 Sep 8.
PubMed 26347124Chen H-Y, Yang H, Chi H-J. Physiological Effects of Deep Touch Pressure on Anxiety Alleviation: The Weighted Blanket Approach. Journal of Medical and Biological Engineering. 2013;33(5):463-70.
Edelson SM, Edelson MG, Kerr DC, Grandin T. Behavioral and physiological effects of deep pressure on children with autism: a pilot study evaluating the efficacy of Grandin's Hug Machine. Am J Occup Ther. 1999 Mar-Apr;53(2):145-52. doi: 10.5014/ajot.53.2.145.
PubMed 10200837Grandin T. Calming effects of deep touch pressure in patients with autistic disorder, college students, and animals. J Child Adolesc Psychopharmacol. 1992 Spring;2(1):63-72. doi: 10.1089/cap.1992.2.63.
PubMed 19630623Krauss KE. The effects of deep pressure touch on anxiety. Am J Occup Ther. 1987 Jun;41(6):366-73. doi: 10.5014/ajot.41.6.366.
PubMed 3688151
Study at a glance
From the registry record, last updated by the sponsor on 10 Dec 2019. Recruitment status is as the sponsor reported it: confirm with the study team.
- Official title
- A Randomized Control Trial to Assess the Impact of Weighted Blankets on Anxiety Among Inpatients With Anorexia Nervosa and Avoidant Restrictive Food Intake Disorder: a Study Protocol
- ClinicalTrials.gov ID
- NCT04191720
- Acronym / sponsor ID
- 18-0596
- Keywords
- anorexia nervosa, weighted blankets, occupational therapy, anxiety, deep pressure stimulation, randomized control trial
- Study type
- Interventional
- Recruitment status
- Completed
- Enrolment
- 24 participants (actual)
- Lead sponsor
- Denver Health and Hospital AuthorityUniversity, hospital or other
- Study start
- 16 Nov 2018 (actual)
- Primary completion
- 19 Mar 2019 (actual)
- Study completion
- 30 Nov 2019 (actual)
- First posted
- 10 Dec 2019 (actual)
- Results
- Not posted in the source record
Clinical summary
The research question as the sponsor registered it. This describes what the study plans to test, not what it found.
The aim of this study is to conduct a randomized control trial (RCT) to assess the efficacy of weighted blankets (WB), on anxiety for patients with severe anorexia nervosa (AN) and avoidant restrictive food intake disorder (ARFID) in an inpatient medical setting. We hypothesize that using weighted blankets will reduce anxiety in these patient populations.
Detailed description
Anorexia nervosa (AN) has one of the highest mortality rates of any psychiatric disorder with anxiety being a common comorbidity. The standard of care for inpatient medical stabilization for patients diagnosed with AN is a multidisciplinary approach with emphasis on nutrition, psychotherapy, and medical management of complaints. Weighted blankets, an example of deep pressure stimulation, have been shown to reduce anxiety. However, not much is known about the effect of weighted blankets in the eating disorder population. Therefore, this randomized control trial (RCT) protocol outlines a study design for assessing the effect of weighted blankets on patients with AN.
A two-arm RCT design will be implemented for this study. A convenience sample of 24 patients will be enrolled with 12 patients in the control and intervention groups based on inclusion criteria. The control group will receive Denver Health's standard of care for patients admitted to its well-known medical stabilization unit for patients with extreme form of eating disorders, while the intervention group will receive both the standard of care and a weighted blanket. A mixed-design ANOVA will be performed to explore differences in the Beck's Anxiety Inventory and Subjective Units of Distress Scale between the intervention and control groups.
Study design
- Primary purpose
- Supportive care
- Allocation
- Randomised
- Intervention model
- Parallel groups
- Masking
- None (open label)
- Number of arms
- 2
| Arm | Type | Receives |
|---|---|---|
| Control group | No intervention | –The control group, or usual care group, will receive occupational therapy standard of care. Occupational therapy standard of care provide training, education, and therapeutic activities including relaxation strategies. These coping mechanisms are aimed at reducing the impact of anxiety on a patient's performance and participation in necessary and meaningful activities of daily living, refeeding and medical stabilization. Specifically, these interventions will include diaphragmatic and yogic breathing exercises, mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (MBCT) education and exercises, therapeutic restorative yoga activities, occupational therapy group participation, aromatherapy, identifying and promoting engagement in meaningful leisure activities, client-centered sensory diets to provide patients with consistent preferred sensory experiences, and individualized checklists and schedules to grade the self-initiation of effective coping strategies. |
| Weighted blanket group | Experimental | Other: Weighted blanketIn the weighted blanket intervention group, patients will receive usual occupational therapy care in addition to a weighted blanket. The patient will be given an appropriately weighted blanket, within 1 lb +/- of 10% of body weight as measured on day of admission. Further, the occupational therapy will provide education to the patient on the use of the weighted blanket. Patients will be free to use the weighted blanket at their discretion, however, during meals, over the shoulders or head, and during ambulation, weighted blanket use will not be permitted. |
Who may qualify
- Ages
- 18 to 89 years
- Sex
- All
- Healthy volunteers
- Not accepted
- Age groups
- Adult, Older adult
Key inclusion criteria (3 listed)
- Clinically diagnosed with AN-R, AN-BP, or ARFID upon admission (per Diagnostic and Statistical Manual-V criteria)
- Moderate/Major Anxiety per initial evaluation score using BAI
- OT assessment
Key exclusion criteria (1 listed)
- Pregnant or nursing mothers
Eligibility is decided by the study team after screening; this overview does not establish that a patient qualifies. Full inclusion and exclusion criteria.
Interventions
| Intervention | Type | Arms |
|---|---|---|
| Weighted blanketPatients that were randomly assigned to the intervention group received a weighted blanket to use at their will to reduce anxiety | Other | Weighted blanket group |
Primary outcome
Anxiety reduction
Time frame: BAI measured during OT evaluation and through study completion, an average of 1 year
Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI)
Anxiety reduction
Time frame: SUDS are measured during OT evaluation and through study completion, an average of 3 weeks
Subjective Units of Distress Scale (SUDS)
1 secondary outcome
Times weighted blankets are used
Time frame: Behaviors will be documented every 2 hours over the course of treatment, through study completion, an average of 3 weeks
Results and safety
The study is completed, but results are not available in the source record. That does not mean the treatment did or did not work.
Research links
- Official record on ClinicalTrials.govLast updated by the sponsor 10 Dec 2019.
- Background: PubMed 16721169Hoek HW. Incidence, prevalence and mortality of anorexia nervosa and other eating disorders. Curr Opin Psychiatry. 2006 Jul;19(4):389-94. doi: 10.1097/01.yco.0000228759.95237.78.
- Background: PubMed 16815322Hudson JI, Hiripi E, Pope HG Jr, Kessler RC. The prevalence and correlates of eating disorders in the National Comorbidity Survey Replication. Biol Psychiatry. 2007 Feb 1;61(3):348-58. doi: 10.1016/j.biopsych.2006.03.040. Epub 2006 Jul 3.
- Background: PubMed 28630708Khalsa SS, Portnoff LC, McCurdy-McKinnon D, Feusner JD. What happens after treatment? A systematic review of relapse, remission, and recovery in anorexia nervosa. J Eat Disord. 2017 Jun 14;5:20. doi: 10.1186/s40337-017-0145-3. eCollection 2017.
- Background: PubMed 29631553Paslakis G, Maas S, Gebhardt B, Mayr A, Rauh M, Erim Y. Prospective, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled phase IIa clinical trial on the effects of an estrogen-progestin combination as add-on to inpatient psychotherapy in adult female patients suffering from anorexia nervosa. BMC Psychiatry. 2018 Apr 10;18(1):93. doi: 10.1186/s12888-018-1683-1.
- Background: PubMed 27594387Nakai Y, Nin K, Noma S, Teramukai S, Wonderlich SA. Characteristics of Avoidant/Restrictive Food Intake Disorder in a Cohort of Adult Patients. Eur Eat Disord Rev. 2016 Nov;24(6):528-530. doi: 10.1002/erv.2476. Epub 2016 Sep 4.
- Background: PubMed 22439288Elliot ML. Figured world of eating disorders: occupations of illness. Can J Occup Ther. 2012 Feb;79(1):15-22. doi: 10.2182/cjot.2012.79.1.3.
- Background: PubMed 20838508Chakraborty K, Basu D. Management of anorexia and bulimia nervosa: An evidence-based review. Indian J Psychiatry. 2010 Apr;52(2):174-86. doi: 10.4103/0019-5545.64596.
- Background: PubMed 30807289Sebastian MR, Wiemann CM, Hergenroeder AC. Rate of weight gain as a predictor of readmission in adolescents with eating disorders. Int J Adolesc Med Health. 2019 Feb 26;33(4). doi: 10.1515/ijamh-2018-0228.
- Background: PubMed 19744759Altman SE, Shankman SA. What is the association between obsessive-compulsive disorder and eating disorders? Clin Psychol Rev. 2009 Nov;29(7):638-46. doi: 10.1016/j.cpr.2009.08.001. Epub 2009 Aug 16.
- Background: PubMed 25165558Nicely TA, Lane-Loney S, Masciulli E, Hollenbeak CS, Ornstein RM. Prevalence and characteristics of avoidant/restrictive food intake disorder in a cohort of young patients in day treatment for eating disorders. J Eat Disord. 2014 Aug 2;2(1):21. doi: 10.1186/s40337-014-0021-3. eCollection 2014.
- Background: PubMed 26347124Meier SM, Bulik CM, Thornton LM, Mattheisen M, Mortensen PB, Petersen L. Diagnosed Anxiety Disorders and the Risk of Subsequent Anorexia Nervosa: A Danish Population Register Study. Eur Eat Disord Rev. 2015 Nov;23(6):524-30. doi: 10.1002/erv.2402. Epub 2015 Sep 8.
- BackgroundChen H-Y, Yang H, Chi H-J. Physiological Effects of Deep Touch Pressure on Anxiety Alleviation: The Weighted Blanket Approach. Journal of Medical and Biological Engineering. 2013;33(5):463-70.
- Individual participant dataSharing planned: No. If we decide to share the data, we would ask researchers to reach out to the PI
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Referral and contact
AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals. Contact the study team or a site listed below; they decide who can take part. This study is not recruiting at the moment.
Rachel Ohene, MOT principal investigator
Denver Health Hospital and Authority
1 site in 1 country: see every site and its status.
Questions about this trial
What is this clinical trial studying?
A study testing Weighted blanket in people with Anorexia Nervosa and Avoidant/Restrictive Food Intake Disorder, run by Denver Health and Hospital Authority at 1 site in United States.
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 3 inclusion and 1 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 10 Dec 2019. 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 United States. 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?
Anxiety reduction (time frame: BAI measured during OT evaluation and through study completion, an average of 1 year). The study lists 2 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 NCT04191720, which also lists 22 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 10 Dec 2019.