Relaxation Effects of Personalized Breathing Exercises for Healthy College Students

Not Applicable

Completed

• Conditions: Breathing Exercises

• Registration Number: NCT06121596
• Lead Sponsor: Technical University of Munich

Brief Summary

Stress plays a major role in the etiology and pathogenesis of anxiety and depression. Relaxation therapies, such as breathing exercises, can reduce stress and increase relaxation.

This study has two aims. First, it aims to personalize and optimize breathing protocols. Second, it aims to tailor breathing protocols to subgroups based on prediction models of expected efficacy.

Three different breathing protocols, varying solely in their instructed breathing frequency with 40 percent (A), 60 percent (B), and 80 percent (C) of the interindividual spontaneous breathing frequency, are tested in a randomized, counterbalanced crossover trial. Other parameters, such as breathing quality (i.e., nasal and diaphragmatic), rhythm (i.e., prolonged exhalation without instructed pauses) and depth (i.e., increased depth due to slower breathing frequency) as well as contextual factors (e.g., posture, video-based instructions, type of pacer, etc.) are invariant between protocols.

First, this study hypothesizes a difference in the relaxation response between breathing protocols A, B, and C. This study looks at the relaxation response from three different angles (1) self-report, (2) autonomic arousal, and (3) central nervous system arousal. Second, this study explores prediction models of expected efficacy based on the interindividual variance in characteristics (i.e., depressive, anxious and stress symptoms as well as expertise in relaxation therapies) and biomarkers (e.g., heart rate variability, peripheral temperature, skin conductance, etc.). Prediction models can tailor breathing protocols to subgroups to increase expected efficacy.

Detailed Description

Not available

Study Timeline

• Study Start: 2023-07-31
• Study First Submitted: 2023-08-10
• Study First Submitted QC: 2023-11-07
• Study First Posted: 2023-11-08
• Primary Completion: 2023-11-27
• Study Completion: 2023-11-27
• Status Verified: 2025-03
• Last Update Submitted: 2025-03-04
• Last Update Posted: 2025-03-07

Recruitment & Eligibility

• Status: COMPLETED
• Sex: All
• Target Recruitment: 42

Inclusion Criteria

• Above 18 years old
• University student
• Native German speaker

Exclusion Criteria

• Any psychiatric (e.g., anxiety), neurologic (e.g., epilepsy) or cardio-pulmonary (e.g., asthma) diagnosis

Study & Design

• Study Type: INTERVENTIONAL
• Study Design: CROSSOVER

Primary Outcome Measures

Name	Time	Method
Relaxation Sum Score	Immediately after each 5-minute breathing exercise	Measured with the German Version of the Relaxation State Questionnaire; Sum scores range from 10 to 50 (higher scores indicate greater relaxation).

Secondary Outcome Measures

Name	Time	Method
Current Perceived Stress Level	Immediately after each 5-minute breathing exercise	Measured on a visual analog scale ranging from 0 to 100, where zero is absolutely no stress and 100 is extreme stress.
Heart Rate Variability	During each 5-minute breathing exercise	Measured via blood volume pulse with a finger clip on the middle finger
Peripheral Temperature	During each 5-minute breathing exercise	Measured via temperature sensor on the small finger
Skin Conductance	During each 5-minute breathing exercise	Measured via skin conductance sensor on the index and ring finger
Power in Frequency Bands	During each 5-minute breathing exercise	Measured via four channel EEG with linked earlobe reference and active electrode placement on F3, F4, F7, and F8 according to the international 10-20 system

Trial Locations

Locations (1)

Technical University of Munich; 🇩🇪 Munich, Bavaria, Germany