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Anorexia NervosaOASISNCT07353151

Artificial Intelligence-based, Virtual Reality Application to Provide Data- Driven, Patient-centred Treatment for People With Eating Disorders

A study testing OASIS virtual reality (VR) program in people with Anorexia Nervosa and Feeding and Eating Disorders, run by King's College London.

Not yet recruiting

Opening soon. The study is approved but enrolment has not started yet. Sites may already take enquiries.

Sites and contacts
Official record
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Trial summary

The goal of this clinical trial is to see if a short virtual reality (VR) program can be used safely and comfortably with people receiving care for anorexia nervosa. The study will also check if people are willing to take part and complete the full week of VR sessions. Read more about this study

Who is it for?
Ages 18 years and older
What is being tested?
OASIS virtual reality (VR) program
Could I receive a placebo?
No, everyone receives an active treatment
How many people
45 participants
Where
No sites listed yet
Study dates
Jan 2026to Aug 2027
Phase
Interventional
Are there results?
Not yet: the study is under way

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 years and older
  • All sexes
  • No healthy volunteers
  • Adult, Older adult

Who may be able to join

  • Adults ≥18 years.
  • Anorexia nervosa receiving or awaiting treatment as usual (TAU) within South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust (inpatient, day service, or outpatient).
  • Medically stable and clinically suitable to take part in brief VR sessions alongside TAU (as judged by the treating team).
  • Able to give informed consent.

Who cannot join

  • Current or recent (within 12 months) serious self-harm with suicidal intent, or behaviour that posed a risk to life (e.g., overdose, deep cutting, swallowing sharp objects), or self-harm likely to cause lasting impairment.
  • Active suicidality or high risk of suicide.
  • Untreated or unstable epilepsy.
  • Psychotic disorder.
  • Outpatient participants with BMI < 10.
  • Current participation in another research study or clinical trial.

Trial locations and contacts

No sites are listed yet. Contact the study team or a site near you to ask about taking part.

About this study

The goal of this clinical trial is to see if a short virtual reality (VR) program can be used safely and comfortably with people receiving care for anorexia nervosa. The study will also check if people are willing to take part and complete the full week of VR sessions.

The main questions the study will answer are:

Read more

Can the investigators recruit and keep participants in the study? Do participants complete most of the VR sessions? Do they find the experience helpful and acceptable? Are there any side effects, like nausea or dizziness?

Participants will:

  • Take part in one VR session each weekday (about 20 to 30 minutes) for one week
  • Continue their usual care during this time
  • Answer questions before and after the VR sessions about their anxiety, mood, motivation, and experience
  • Some participants may join a short interview or focus group to share feedback

The VR program includes scenes for food-related exposure, calming music, motivational phrases, and goal setting. The app was designed with help from people with lived experience of anorexia and based on psychological therapies used in treatment.

Who can take part:

  • Adults aged 18 or older
  • People receiving or waiting for care for anorexia nervosa at South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust (SLaM)
  • People who are medically stable and able to give informed consent

Why this matters:

This study will help researchers understand if using VR in eating disorder services is practical, safe, and acceptable. The results will help plan a larger trial in the future to see if this type of VR treatment can support recovery from anorexia nervosa. Taking part is voluntary, and participants can stop at any time.

Read the detailed description

This single-site, open-label feasibility clinical trial will test a brief virtual reality (VR) program (OASIS) delivered alongside treatment as usual for adults with anorexia nervosa. OASIS was co-developed by South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust (SLaM), King's College London, and SyncVR Medical UK with input from people with lived experience.

The VR sessions are designed to support recovery by providing:

  • Food-related exposure scenes to practise approaching commonly avoided foods
  • Relaxing environments with music
  • Motivational prompts and goal-setting within the VR experience

Participants complete five supervised VR sessions over one week (about 20-30 minutes each) in inpatient, day service, or outpatient settings. A clinician or trained researcher is present for all sessions. Pacing can be adjusted, and sessions can be paused or stopped at any time.

Feasibility will be assessed using study process measures (for example, recruitment and retention, session completion, and brief usability/acceptability feedback) and session logs. Safety is monitored during every session and via routine clinical information already collected in care; no additional research blood tests are required.

Participants complete brief assessments at baseline and after the one-week intervention. These include validated self-report measures of eating-disorder symptoms, food-related fear, mood/anxiety, and motivation, plus very short ratings around sessions to track immediate experience (for example, anxiety or relaxation). A subset may take part in a short interview or focus group to describe what felt helpful or difficult and suggest refinements.

There is no randomization or control arm in this feasibility phase. Findings will be used to decide whether and how to run a larger randomized controlled trial, including practical procedures (for example, session dose and outcome burden), expected adherence, safety monitoring steps, and willingness to be randomized.

Being tested
OASIS virtual reality (VR) program
Keywords
Anorexia nervosa (AN), Virtual reality (VR), Eating disorders, Food exposure, Feasibility study, Food-related anxiety, Exposure-based intervention, South London and Maudsley (SLaM), King's College London (KCL), United Kingdom
Medical subject headings
Anorexia Nervosa, Feeding and Eating Disorders

What participants receive

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

  • OASIS virtual reality (VR) programBehavioural

    Immersive VR sessions including (a) food-related exposure scenes, (b) relaxing music, and (c) motivational prompts and goal-setting. Delivered once daily on weekdays for one week (five sessions; ≈20-30 minutes each), supervised by a clinician or trained researcher. Sessions may be paused or stopped at any time.

Study groups in NCT07353151
Study groupRoleWhat they receive
OASIS VR + Treatment as Usual (TAU)ExperimentalSingle-group, open-label feasibility arm. Participants receive a brief virtual reality (VR) program (OASIS) alongside treatment as usual. The VR program is delivered as five supervised sessions over one week (≈20-30 minutes per session) in inpatient, day service, or outpatient settings.
Receives: Behavioral: OASIS virtual reality (VR) program

What is being measured

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

  1. Session adherence to the VR intervention

    Proportion of scheduled VR sessions completed per participant, recorded from session logs. A session counts as completed if ≥20 minutes are delivered. Primary endpoint = % of participants who complete ≥4 of 5 sessions; the investigators will also report mean (SD) sessions completed.

    Measured: Baseline to end of Week 1 (5 weekdays)

Secondary outcomes (11)
  1. Recruitment and retention feasibility

    Recruitment = % of eligible approached who consent. Retention = % of consented who complete the 1-week assessment.

    Measured: Months 2-10 (recruitment) and Baseline to end of Week 1 (retention)

  2. EDE-Q Global Score

    Change in global score on the Eating Disorder Examination Questionnaire (EDE-Q) from baseline to end of Week 1. Score (0-6); higher scores indicate greater severity of eating disorder symptoms.

    Measured: Baseline and end of Week 1

  3. EFQ Total Score

    Change in total score on the Eating and Food Questionnaire (EFQ) from baseline to end of Week 1.

    Units: Score (0-50); higher scores indicate more maladaptive eating behaviors.

    Measured: Baseline and end of Week 1

  4. FOFM Score

    Change in score on the Fear of Food Measure (FOFM) from baseline to end of Week 1.

    Units: Score (0-40); higher scores indicate greater food-related anxiety.

    Measured: Baseline and end of Week 1

  5. M3VAS Items

    Change in visual analog scale ratings (M3VAS) for mood and anxiety from baseline to end of Week 1.

    Units: Score (0-100 mm); higher scores indicate greater symptom severity.

    Measured: Baseline and end of Week 1

  6. DASS-42 Total Score

    Change in total score on the Depression Anxiety Stress Scales (DASS-42) from baseline to end of Week 1. Units: Score (0-126); higher scores indicate greater psychological distress.

    Measured: Baseline and end of Week 1

  7. Acceptability/usability of VR

    Study-specific 0-10 ratings of acceptability/helpfulness (higher = better); summarized as mean (SD).

    Measured: End of Week 1

  8. Willingness outcomes

    (a) Willingness to try foods encountered in VR outside sessions (four 0-10 items: willingness, readiness, confidence, 1-week likelihood); (b) willingness to participate in a future randomized trial (Yes/No).

    Measured: End of Week 1

  9. Feasibility of assessment battery

    Completion rates across all planned questionnaires; instruments with >25% missing at either time point flagged as infeasible for a future trial.

    Measured: Baseline and end of Week 1

  10. Safety (adverse events and VR-related symptoms)

    Counts/types of adverse events (including nausea, dizziness, headache); % of participants with ≥1 event.

    Measured: During sessions through end of Week 1

  11. Body Mass Index (BMI)

    Change in body mass index (BMI) from baseline to end of Week 1. Units: kg/m²; higher values indicate higher body mass.

    Measured: Baseline and end of Week 1

Timeline

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

  1. First posted20 Jan 2026
  2. Study startJan 2026 (estimated)
  3. Primary completionAug 2027 (estimated)
  4. Study completionAug 2027 (estimated)

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
Other
Allocation
Not applicable
Intervention model
Single group
Model description
Single-group, open-label feasibility design. All participants receive the OASIS VR add-on alongside treatment as usual across inpatient, day service, or outpatient settings. The intervention consists of five supervised sessions over one week (≈20-30 minutes each). No randomization or control arm in this phase; focus is on feasibility, acceptability, adherence, and safety.
Masking
None (open label)
Enrolment
45 participants (estimated)
IDs, dates and publications
ClinicalTrials.gov ID
NCT07353151
Sponsor's protocol ID
IRAS: 359405
Acronym
OASIS
Status last verified
Jan 2026
First submitted
13 Nov 2025
Last updated
21 Jan 2026
Results posted
No
Data monitoring committee
No
FDA-regulated drug
No
FDA-regulated device
No
Individual data sharing
Undecided: Sharing of de-identified individual participant data (IPD) is under consideration pending sponsor and NHS approvals, information governance review, and repository selection. Aggregate results will be published. An IPD sharing statement will be updated once approvals are in place.

Publications

  • Cardi V, Krug I, Perpina C, Mataix-Cols D, Roncero M, Treasure J. The use of a nonimmersive virtual reality programme in anorexia nervosa: a single case-report. Eur Eat Disord Rev. 2012 May;20(3):240-5. doi: 10.1002/erv.1155. Epub 2011 Sep 20.

    PubMed 21932282
  • Bektas S, Natali L, Rowlands K, Valmaggia L, Di Pietro J, Mutwalli H, Himmerich H, Treasure J, Cardi V. Exploring Correlations of Food-Specific Disgust with Eating Disorder Psychopathology and Food Interaction: A Preliminary Study Using Virtual Reality. Nutrients. 2023 Oct 19;15(20):4443. doi: 10.3390/nu15204443.

    PubMed 37892518
  • Natali L, Meregalli V, Rowlands K, Di Pietro J, Treasure J, Collantoni E, Meneguzzo P, Tenconi E, Favaro A, Fontana F, Ceccato E, Sala A, Valmaggia L, Cardi V. Virtual food exposure with positive mood induction or social support to reduce food anxiety in anorexia nervosa: A feasibility study. Int J Eat Disord. 2024 Mar;57(3):703-715. doi: 10.1002/eat.24155. Epub 2024 Feb 17.

    PubMed 38366755
  • Young KS, Rennalls SJ, Leppanen J, Mataix-Cols D, Simmons A, Suda M, Campbell IC, O'Daly O, Cardi V. Exposure to food in anorexia nervosa and brain correlates of food-related anxiety: findings from a pilot study. J Affect Disord. 2020 Sep 1;274:1068-1075. doi: 10.1016/j.jad.2020.05.077. Epub 2020 May 25.

    PubMed 32663934

Questions about this trial

What is this clinical trial studying?

A study testing OASIS virtual reality (VR) program in people with Anorexia Nervosa and Feeding and Eating Disorders, run by King's College London.

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 4 inclusion and 6 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: opening soon, as of the sponsor's last update on 21 Jan 2026. Status can change between updates, so confirm with the study contact before making plans.

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?

This study is still under way. Results are not available in the source record yet.

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

Contact Wafa A Alharbi (+447404450403, wafa.alharbi@kcl.ac.uk), or a site near the patient. AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals.

What does the primary outcome measure?

Session adherence to the VR intervention (time frame: Baseline to end of Week 1 (5 weekdays)). 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 NCT07353151, which also lists 4 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 21 Jan 2026.

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OASIS Clinical Trial NCT07353151 | AzTrials