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SleepUp Digital CBTi-based Platform for Insomnia

Not Applicable
Recruiting
Conditions
Sleep Disorder
Insomnia
Sleep Hygiene
Interventions
Behavioral: Sleep hygiene - minimal intervention
Behavioral: Online Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy for Insomnia and complementary therapies
Behavioral: Regular Cognitive Behavioural Therapy for Insomnia
Registration Number
NCT04949360
Lead Sponsor
SleepUp Tecnologia em Saúde Ltda
Brief Summary

Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy for insomnia (CBTi) is a well-established therapeutic intervention for insomnia. SleepUp provides a digital therapeutics platform based on CBTi and additional features. This clinical trial aims at analyzing the efficacy of the CBTi-based platform offered by SleepUp in reducing symptoms of insomnia.

The sample will be composed of 160 individuals, both males and females, from 20 to 60 years old, with insomnia symptoms considered as at least mild. Those who accept to participate will be randomized and distributed in four groups:

* Standard CBTi (CBTi-S): This treatment consists of an eight-week treatment composed by weekly and structure appointments with board-certified sleep psychologists. The appointments will be made remotely (video calls with psychologists).

* Minimal intervention - Sleep hygiene (MI-SH): This group will receive an educational program on sleep hygiene through the SleepUp app. Its content covers topics that are also covered in the online CBTi sessions. This procedure is more adequate as a control than the commonly used no treatment or waiting list controls, due to the behavioral

* Online CBTI (CBTI-O): This group will receive access to an eight-weeks CBTi-based treatment through the SleepUp app. The participants of this group will receive interventions equivalent to the standard in-person CBTi, but provided through a digital platform.

* Online CBTi + additional features (CBTi-O+): This group will have access to the complete premium version of SleepUp platform. It includes those presented in the CBTi-O group and other therapeutic and complementary features (including meditation audios and videos, mindfulness therapy, relaxation soundtracks, sleep hygiene tips, virtual assistant, and telehealth.

All participants in all groups will be assessed periodically throughout the eight weeks of intervention with standard sleep questionnaires and sleep logs. Additionally, follow ups will be made at two, four and six months after the end of the intervention. Equivalent intervals will be applied to the MI-SH group.

Detailed Description

Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy for insomnia (CBTi) is a well-established therapeutic intervention for insomnia. In its standard presentation, it is composed by 6 to 12 weekly appointments with a board-certified sleep psychologist. SleepUp provides a digital therapeutics platform based on CBTi and additional features. This clinical trial aims at analyzing the efficacy of the CBTi-based platform offered by SleepUp in reducing symptoms of insomnia.

The participants will be recruited based on advertising on social media and invited to participate. Those participants who are eligible in accordance to the inclusion and exclusion criteria will be contact by a member of the research team who will provide a consent form and will explain the terms and conditions of this research project. The sample will be composed of 160 individuals, both males and females, from 20 to 60 years old, with insomnia symptoms considered as at least mild, according to the Insomnia Severity Index (ISI). All groups shall have similar proportions of gender and of insomnia symptoms severity. Those who accepted to participate will be randomized and distributed in four groups:

* Standard CBTi (CBTi-S): This is a positive control group, in which standard CBTi (the golden standard behavioral treatment for insomnia) will be made available. This treatment consists of an eight-week treatment composed by weekly and structure appointments with psychologists. Only psychologists board-certified in sleep medicine will perform the CBTi sessions, and none of them are part of the research team. The appointments will be made remotely (video calls with psychologists), which have already been proven to be equivalent to the in-person CBTi.

* Minimal intervention - Sleep hygiene (MI-SH): This group corresponds to a negative control group, subjected to minimal intervention. It is based on the delivery of informative material regarding normal sleep pattern and sleep hygiene (through SleepUp app). This procedure is more adequate as a control than the commonly used no treatment or waiting list controls, due to the behavioral nature of insomnia.

* Online CBTI (CBTI-O): This group will receive access to an eight-week CBTi-based treatment through the SleepUp app. The platform will be updated into a non-commercial version. This way, the participants of this group will receive interventions equivalent to the standard in-person CBTi, but provided through a digital platform.

* Online CBTi + additional features (CBTi-O+): This group will have access to the complete premium version of SleepUp platform. It includes those presented in the CBTi-O group and other therapeutic and complementary features (including meditation audios and videos, mindfulness therapy, relaxation soundtracks, sleep hygiene tips, virtual assistant, and telehealth.

All participants in all groups will be assessed periodically throughout the eight weeks of intervention. Additionally, follow ups will be made at two, four and six months after the end of the intervention. Equivalent intervals will be applied to the SH-MI group. The following clinical questionnaires and scales will be used:

* Sleep log: It includes self-reported items regarding wake and bedtime, sleep latency and other sleeping habits. It allows the calculation of total sleep time, sleep efficiency and wake time after sleep onset. Fille daily.

* Morningness and Eveningness Questionnaire: It evaluates chronotype based on 19 items, allowing categorizing the participants according to the following categories: morning type (definitive or moderate), intermediate, or evening type (definitive or moderate). Applied once, in the first week of follow up.

* Insomnia Severity Index: It evaluates the presence and severity of insomnia, categorizing the participants according to the following categories: no, mild, moderate or severe insomnia. Applied once every two weeks.

* Epworth Sleepiness Scale: It evaluates excessive daytime sleepiness by inquiring about the chance of sleeping in eight daily situations. Scores higher than 10 indicates excessive daytime sleepiness. Applied once every two weeks.

* Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index: It evaluates overall sleep quality based on 19 self-reported items. Scores higher than 5 indicates poor sleep quality. Applied once every two weeks.

* Sleep Hygiene Index: It habits related to sleep hygiene, based on 13 self-reported items.

Recruitment & Eligibility

Status
RECRUITING
Sex
All
Target Recruitment
160
Inclusion Criteria
  • Literate Brazilian portuguese speakers.
  • Insomnia symptoms (as measured by ISI).
  • An Android-based smartphone or tablet with access to the Internet.
Exclusion Criteria
  • Previous experience with CBTi.
  • Use of sleeping pills or any other treatment for insomnia for two or more days a week in the last three months.

Study & Design

Study Type
INTERVENTIONAL
Study Design
PARALLEL
Arm && Interventions
GroupInterventionDescription
Minimal intervention - Sleep hygiene (MI-SH):Sleep hygiene - minimal interventionThis group corresponds to a negative control group/placebo comparator, subjected to minimal intervention. It is based on the delivery of informative material regarding normal sleep pattern and sleep hygiene (through regular mail and e-mail). This procedure is more adequate as a control than the commonly used no-treatment or waiting list controls, due to the behavioral nature of insomnia.
Online CBTi + additional features (CBTi-O+)Online Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy for Insomnia and complementary therapiesThis group will have access to the complete premium version of SleepUp platform. It includes those presented in the CBTi-O group and other therapeutic and complementary features (including meditation audios and videos, mindfulness therapy, relaxation soundtracks, sleep hygiene tips, virtual assistant, and telehealth.
Standard CBTi (CBTi-S):Regular Cognitive Behavioural Therapy for InsomniaThis is a positive control group/active comparator, in which standard CBTi (the golden standard behavioral treatment for insomnia) will be made available. This treatment consists of an eight-week treatment composed by weekly and structured appointments with a board-certified sleep psychologist. The professionals performing the CBTi sessions will not be part of the research team. Due to the restriction imposed by the COVID-19 pandemic, the appointments will be made remotely (video calls with psychologists), which have already been proven to be equivalent to the in-person CBTi.
Online CBTI (CBTI-O)Online Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy for Insomnia and complementary therapiesThis group will receive access to an eight-month CBTi-based treatment through the SleepUp app. The platform will be updated into a non-commercial version, and all features other than the CBTi track, the sleep log and the clinical tests will be removed. This way, the participants of this group will receive interventions equivalent to the standard in-person CBTi, but provided through a digital platform. The treatment last eight weeks.
Primary Outcome Measures
NameTimeMethod
Adherence to the treatmentOn the completion of the intervention (average: 8 weeks)

It will be measured as the percentage of participants who completed the treatment, out of those who effectively initiated it. Dropouts will be considered whenever a participants fail to comply with the tasks relative to each group for two consecutive weeks, or postpone the completion of these tasks for three times. These tasks refer to the responses to periodic questionnaires and to the completion of the CBTi or CBTi-O sessions (when applicable).The aim of this comparison is to evaluate whether the adherence rate in the CBTi-O and CBTi-O+ groups are similar to the standard treatment (CBTi-S) or higher than the minimal treatment (MI-SH).

Response to treatmentOn the baseline and on the completion of the intervention (average: 8 weeks)

Patients are considered to be responsive to treatment if the ISI score is at least 7 points lower than on the basal evaluation.

Remission of symptomsOn the completion of the intervention (average: 8 weeks)

Patients are considered to be with no symptoms of insomnia if the ISI score is lower then 8.

Maintenance of results6 months after the end of the treatment.

Among those patients who completed the treatment program, maintenance of results will be calculated based on the same metrics of "response to treatment" and "remission of symptoms".

Secondary Outcome Measures
NameTimeMethod
Maintenance of results4 months after the end of the treatment.

Among those patients who completed the treatment program, maintenance of results will be calculated based on the same metrics of "response to treatment" and "remission of symptoms".

Adherence to the treatment6 weeks after the beginning of the intervention.

It will be measured as the percentage of participants who completed the treatment, out of those who effectively initiated it. Dropouts will be considered whenever a participants fail to comply with the tasks relative to each group for two consecutive weeks, or postpone the completion of these tasks for three times. These tasks refer to the responses to periodic questionnaires and to the completion of the CBTi or CBTi-O sessions (when applicable).The aim of this comparison is to evaluate whether the adherence rate in the CBTi-O and CBTi-O+ groups are similar to the standard treatment (CBTi-S) or higher than the minimal treatment (SL-MI).

Response to treatmentOn the baseline and 6 weeks after the beginning of the intervention.

Patients are considered to be responsive to treatment if the ISI score is at least 7 points lower than on the basal evaluation.

Remission of symptoms6 weeks after the beginning of the intervention.

Patients are considered to be with no symptoms of insomnia if the ISI score is lower then 8.

Sleep quality6 months after the end of the treatment

Sleep quality will be measured by the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index

Sleep hygiene6 months after the end of the treatment

Sleep hygiene habits will be measured by the Sleep Hygiene Index

Excessive daytime sleepiness6 months after the end of the treatment

Excessive daytime sleepiness will be measured using the Epworth Sleepiness Scale

Trial Locations

Locations (1)

SleepUp Tecnologia em Saúde LTDA

🇧🇷

São Caetano Do Sul, São Paulo, Brazil

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