MedPath

Rehabilitation Gaming System for Intensive Care Units

Not Applicable
Recruiting
Conditions
Critical Illness
Interventions
Other: Cognitive stimulation and psychological support (RGS-ICU)
Registration Number
NCT06267911
Lead Sponsor
University of the Balearic Islands
Brief Summary

Admission to an Intensive Care Unit (ICU) is a potentially traumatic experience for a mentally vulnerable person. Beyond the stress and anxiety associated with the ICU environment and medical procedures, survivors of critical illness are at risk of developing cognitive and psychological sequelae related to Post-Intensive Care Syndrome (PICS). These disorders are associated with high economic, medical and personal costs.

This trial aims to evaluate the efficacy of an innovative neuropsychological e-health intervention for early cognitive stimulation and psychological support of people in critical care, i.e. the Rehabilitation Gaming System for Intensive Care Units (RGS-ICU) intervention, in improving comfort during ICU admission and cognition and mental health three and 12 months after ICU discharge. The RGS-ICU intervention, applied as an adjunct to standard ICU care, is based on non-immersive virtual reality techniques and has been specifically designed and developed to suit the needs of people in critical care and the characteristics of the ICU environment. To ensure the safety of the intervention, participants' physiological parameters will be automatically recorded by advanced continuous monitoring systems as part of standard ICU care.

The investigators hypothesize that the cognitive stimulation and psychological support protocols of the RGS-ICU intervention, applied as an adjunct to standard ICU care, in addition to being safe for people in critical care units, will improve comfort during ICU admission and cognitive and mental health outcomes after ICU discharge, compared to receiving standard ICU care alone.

The findings derived from this trial may contribute to establish a novel and superior paradigm of human-centered ICU care to improve the comfort of people admitted to the ICU. This achievement could also have a relevant impact on medical and economic costs during ICU admission, and on functionality and health-related quality of life after ICU discharge associated with the reduction of cognitive and psychological sequelae linked to PICS.

The RGS-ICU intervention has been designed at Corporacion Parc Taulí with the collaboration of the University of the Balearic Islands and has been developed by Eodyne Systems S.L., a company dedicated to the development of science-based technological solutions for intervention, monitoring, diagnosis, and prognosis in stroke and other brain disorders.

Detailed Description

Not available

Recruitment & Eligibility

Status
RECRUITING
Sex
All
Target Recruitment
80
Inclusion Criteria
  • Adult patients (≥18 years)
  • Admitted to a medical/surgical ICU
  • For respiratory failure, cardiogenic shock, or septic shock
  • With an expected ICU stay of ≥48 hours
  • Residing in Catalonia or Majorca (Balearic Islands)
  • Who speak Catalan and/or Spanish
  • Who are able to give informed consent by themselves or through an authorized representative
Exclusion Criteria
  • History of intellectual disability or other neurodevelopmental disorders, such as autism spectrum disorder
  • History of neurological disorders, dementia or other neurodegenerative diseases, such as epilepsy, Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease or multiple sclerosis
  • History of brain damage, such as traumatic brain injury or stroke
  • History of severe psychiatric illness, such as psychotic, bipolar, depressive, obsessive-compulsive, post-traumatic or personality disorder
  • Suspected or confirmed substance use disorder
  • Suspected or confirmed communicable disease in an isolated patient
  • Uncorrected hearing or visual impairment
  • Any medical condition that prevents safe upper extremity mobility, such as skin lesions, burns, or fractures
  • Life expectancy <12 months
  • Enrolled in another trial that does not allow co-enrollment

Study & Design

Study Type
INTERVENTIONAL
Study Design
PARALLEL
Arm && Interventions
GroupInterventionDescription
Cognitive stimulation and psychological support (RGS-ICU)Cognitive stimulation and psychological support (RGS-ICU)-
Primary Outcome Measures
NameTimeMethod
Executive function performance12 months after discharge from the ICU

Difference in executive function performance (Z scores) between experimental and non-intervention groups assessed with the Trail Making Test (TMT), the Stroop Color and Word Test (SCWT), and the verbal phonemic fluency (FAS) test 12 months after ICU discharge. Z scores have a mean of 0 and a standard deviation of 1. Higher scores indicate better executive function performance.

Working memory performance12 months after discharge from the ICU

Difference in working memory performance (Z scores) between experimental and non-intervention groups assessed with the WAIS-IV Backward Digit Span subtest 12 months after ICU discharge. Z scores have a mean of 0 and a standard deviation of 1. Higher scores indicate better working memory performance.

Learning/memory performance12 months after discharge from the ICU

Difference in learning/memory performance (Z scores) between experimental and non-intervention groups assessed with the Rey Auditory Verbal Learning Test (RAVLT) 12 months after ICU discharge. Z scores have a mean of 0 and a standard deviation of 1. Higher scores indicate better learning/memory performance.

Attention performance12 months after discharge from the ICU

Difference in attention performance (Z scores) between experimental and non-intervention groups assessed with the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale-IV (WAIS-IV) Forward Digit Span subtest 12 months after ICU discharge. Z scores have a mean of 0 and a standard deviation of 1. Higher scores indicate better attention performance.

Incidence of Treatment-Emergent Adverse Events [Safety]From ICU admission to ICU discharge or up to a maximum of 28 days after randomization

Number of interrupted sessions due to adverse events in the patients' physiological parameters (oxygen saturation, respiratory rate and heart rate) during admission to the ICU. The higher the number of interrupted sessions, the less safe the intervention.

Processing speed performance12 months after discharge from the ICU

Difference in processing speed performance (Z scores) between experimental and non-intervention groups assessed with the WAIS-IV Digit Symbol-Coding subtest and the Symbol Digit Modalities Test (SDMT) 12 months after ICU discharge. Z scores have a mean of 0 and a standard deviation of 1. Higher scores indicate better executive function performance.

Secondary Outcome Measures
NameTimeMethod
Worry intensityFrom ICU admission to ICU discharge or up to a maximum of 28 days after randomization

Change in worry intensity before and after the intervention evaluated with a Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) with range 0-10. Higher scores indicate more intense worry.

Pain intensityFrom ICU admission to ICU discharge or up to a maximum of 28 days after randomization

Change in pain intensity before and after the intervention evaluated with a Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) with range 0-10. Higher scores indicate more intense pain.

Comfort experiencedDischarge from the ICU

Difference in experienced comfort between experimental and non-intervention groups assessed with the Patient Evaluation of Emotional Comfort Experienced (PEECE) questionnaire at ICU discharge, a 12-item instrument with range 0-48. Higher scores indicate better subjective psychological well-being.

Dyspnea intensityFrom ICU admission to ICU discharge or up to a maximum of 28 days after randomization

Change in dyspnea intensity before and after the intervention evaluated with a Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) with range 0-10. Higher scores indicate more intense dyspnea.

Anxiety symptoms12 months after discharge from the ICU

Difference in anxiety symptoms between experimental and non-intervention groups assessed with the Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD-7) questionnaire 12 months after ICU discharge, a 7-item instrument with range 0-21. Higher scores indicate more severe anxiety symptoms.

Sadness intensityFrom ICU admission to ICU discharge or up to a maximum of 28 days after randomization

Change in sadness intensity before and after the intervention evaluated with a Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) with range 0-10. Higher scores indicate more intense sadness.

Symptoms of depression12 months after discharge from the ICU

Difference in symptoms of depression between experimental and non-intervention groups assessed with the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9) 12 months after ICU discharge, a 9-item instrument with range 0-27. Higher scores indicate more severe symptoms of depression.

Symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder12 months after discharge from the ICU

Difference in post-traumatic stress disorder symptoms between experimental and non-intervention groups assessed with the Treatment-Outcome Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder Scale (TOP-8) 12 months after ICU discharge, a 8-item instrument with range 0-32. Higher scores indicate more severe symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder.

Trial Locations

Locations (3)

University of the Balearic Islands

🇪🇸

Palma De Mallorca, Balearic Islands, Spain

Hospital Universitari Son Llàtzer

🇪🇸

Palma De Mallorca, Balearic Islands, Spain

Corporacion Parc Tauli

🇪🇸

Sabadell, Catalonia, Spain

© Copyright 2025. All Rights Reserved by MedPath