NCT06410807

Development of Web-Based Mind-Body Trainings for Adults With Subjective Concerns

Development of Online Mind-body Training Programs for Adults With Subjective Cognitive Decline

• Status: Completed
• Phase: —
• Study type: Observational
• Enrollment: 23 (actual)
• Sponsor: Ohio State University · Academic / Other
• Sex: All
• Age: 50 Years
• Healthy volunteers: —

Summary

The goal of this observational study is to develop online, self-paced mindfulness (iMBSR) and lifestyle education (iLifeEd) programs for adults with cognitive concerns. Participants will engage in focus groups to discuss healthy living, web-based behavioral interventions, intervention content/format and ideal outcomes after engaging in behavioral interventions that promote healthy living. Additionally, participants will provide feedback on the protocol and online platform for either iMBSR or iLifeEd. This feedback will be used to refine the iMBSR and iLifeEd protocols for future use in the randomized controlled trial portion of the parent project.

Detailed description

Rising prevalence rates of Alzheimer's Disease (AD) have led to widespread interest in identifying individuals at-risk for AD and for developing interventions that delay or prevent the onset of AD. Growing evidence suggests that subjective cognitive decline (SCD)-characterized by perceived persistent declines in cognitive functioning compared to previously normal cognitive status-may be a preclinical stage of Alzheimer's Disease. Individuals with SCD can be identified by self-reported declines in cognitive functioning based on self-report questionnaires, such as the Everyday Cognition Questionnaire, yet also exhibit normal performance based on age, sex, and education corrected standardized cognitive measures. There is mounting evidence that mindfulness training, traditionally offered as an 8-week in-person MBSR program, improves cognitive functioning including in the investigators' pilot MBSR trial with healthy older adults. Further, recent evidence from adults over the age of 60 has linked trait mindfulness with lower accumulation of AD pathology, lower cognitive decline on measures of global cognition, sustained attention, and immediate and delayed memory. Together, this suggests that mindfulness training could be beneficial as a preventative training program in adults with SCD who have yet to show objective cognitive impairments. However, limited accessibility, time and schedule constraints, and travel logistics are among the greatest barriers for in-person MBSR programs. Internet-based mindfulness programs are a promising and cost-effective approach, but few studies have adapted MBSR for internet-delivery in an asynchronous format. Several internet-based interventions ideographically tailored for the target population, including acquired brain injury, fibromyalgia, and heart disease show promising support. The present study seeks to address the urgent need for the development of alternative training programs that provide theoretical promise for reducing age-related cognitive decline, demonstrate broad transfer effects to domains of cognitive functioning that directly impact everyday functioning, and facilitate the development of a mechanistic model with easily identifiable and separable mechanisms. The aim of the present study is to iteratively develop and refine internet-based MBSR (iMBSR) and internet-based lifestyle education (iLifeEd) protocols with a team of stakeholders (i.e., focus groups). Focus groups of adults with subjective cognitive decline will be recruited to iteratively develop and refine the platforms for the iMBSR and iLifeEd groups. The iMBSR program will be a promising platform to deliver evidence-based mindfulness meditation techniques. Additionally, the iLifeEd program that will match the iMBSR program in terms of format of delivery, duration of training, peer support, and homework assignment will be developed.

Conditions

• Aging
• Focus Groups

Interventions

Type	Name	Description
OTHER	Focus groups	The present study consists of 5 focus groups over 3 waves to inform the development and refinement of internet-based mindfulness (iMBSR) and lifestyle education (iLifeEd) protocols for use in future clinical trials. 50% females and 50% minoritized participants will be recruited to ensure representation across sex and race. For all focus groups, adults (over the age of 50 years) who report SCD will be recruited. Specifically, the Everyday Cognition Questionnaire (E-Cog) will be administered to quantify informant-reported deficits in cognitive functioning.

Timeline

• Start date: 2024-11-01
• Primary completion: 2025-05-02
• Completion: 2025-05-02
• First posted: 2024-05-13
• Last updated: 2025-12-18

Locations

1 site across 1 country: United States