NCT05099926

The Reducing Exercise Sensitivity With Exposure Training (RESET) Study

The Reducing Exercise Sensitivity With Exposure Training (RESET) Study: Interoceptive Bias Reduction Training After Acute Coronary Syndrome

• Status: Terminated
• Phase: N/A
• Study type: Interventional
• Enrollment: 4 (actual)
• Sponsor: Columbia University · Academic / Other
• Sex: All
• Age: 18 Years
• Healthy volunteers: Not accepted

Summary

This study investigates the feasibility of conducting a home-based reducing exercise sensitivity with exposure training (RESET) intervention among acute coronary syndrome (ACS) survivors. RESET is an at-home, 2 visit intervention that involves psychoeducation, a brief, low-to-moderate intensity walking session (i.e., interoceptive exposure), and interoceptive counseling, and is designed to reduce exercise sensitivity (i.e., fear of exercise sensations) and improve participation in exercise-based secondary-prevention guidelines (cardiac rehabilitation and physical activity). The primary purpose of this pilot study is to test the feasibility, acceptability, and appropriateness of recruiting and administering the RESET intervention in ACS patients.

Detailed description

Fear of exercise may be prominent among acute coronary syndrome (ACS) survivors due to the presence of physical disease states that can exacerbate uncertainty about bodily sensations. For instance, patients may perceive physical sensations experienced during exercise (e.g., increased heart rate, shortness of breath, fatigue) as dangerous, intolerable, or similar to sensations experienced or attributed to their ACS, resulting in a fear of exercise sensations (i.e., exercise sensitivity). As a result, patients may avoid heart healthy activities, such as cardiac rehabilitation (CR) and physical activity, that prompt these physical sensations or terminate activities at the first sign of discomfort. Novel programs that target patient-level fears related to exercise sensations (i.e., exercise sensitivity) during the first-year post-discharge (the time window patients are eligible for CR) may be needed to improve CR participation and physical activity levels. To the investigator's knowledge, no intervention has been developed specifically to reduce exercise sensitivity in ACS survivors within the first year post-hospital discharge; a vulnerable population that is extremely sedentary, fails to meet physical activity guidelines, and with the most to gain from CR and physical activity participation. Thus, the investigator developed a de novo protocol for a reducing exercise sensitivity with exposure training (RESET) intervention.

Conditions

• Acute Coronary Syndrome
• Fear Anxiety
• Physical Inactivity

Interventions

Type	Name	Description
BEHAVIORAL	Reducing Exercise Sensitivity with Exposure Training	Participants complete 2, home-based intervention visits on a secure video visit platform. Video visits include psychoeducation, interoceptive exposure, and interoceptive counseling. For homework, participants are asked to document their weekly physical activity and exercise sensations in a journal. Psychoeducation: Participants are educated about the benefits and safety of exercise and cardiac rehabilitation, the role of fear and anxiety in exercise avoidance, and the concept of interoceptive exposure. Interoceptive Exposure: A gradual six-minute walk (G6MW) serves as a low-risk form of interoceptive exposure. Exercise sensations and ratings of perceived intensity and distress are collected before and after the G6MW. Interoceptive Counseling: Participants review and reflect upon their pre-walking and post-walking physical sensations and ratings (intensity and distress) with a research team member. Homework is also reviewed.

Timeline

• Start date: 2021-10-13
• Primary completion: 2023-01-27
• Completion: 2023-02-03
• First posted: 2021-10-29
• Last updated: 2024-04-04
• Results posted: 2024-04-04

Locations

1 site across 1 country: United States