Mindfulness for Cognition in Early-stage Alzheimer's Disease

Last updated: January 23, 2025
Sponsor: VA Boston Healthcare System
Overall Status: Active - Recruiting

Phase

N/A

Condition

Aging

Dementia

Mild Cognitive Impairment

Treatment

Mindfulness Intervention

Waitlist then mindfulness

Clinical Study ID

NCT06792877
1796795
  • Ages 50-100
  • All Genders
  • Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Study Summary

The goal of this clinical trial is to learn if mindfulness meditation can improve outcomes in older adults with and without cognitive impairment. The main questions it aims to answer are:

  1. How does mindfulness impact thinking and memory?

  2. How does mindfulness influence brain function and structure?

  3. How does mindfulness affect daily function and quality of life?

Researchers will compare all outcomes to one other groups. In one group, individuals will participate in a mindfulness class intervention; in the other group, individuals will not engage in any active interventions immediately, but will be placed on a waitlist for the mindfulness intervention. Researchers will compare all outcomes between the groups groups to determine whether the mindfulness interventions leads to greater improvement compared to no intervention (waitlist group).

Participants will:

  • Be randomly assigned to participate in the mindfulness intervention, or no immediate intervention (waitlist)

  • Complete paper-and-pencil cognitive testing, surveys, computerized tasks, and neuroimaging measures (EEG and MRI) before and after the intervention

Outcomes will be assess at baseline, 2 months, 4 months and 6 months.

Eligibility Criteria

Inclusion

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Healthy older adults will show cognitive performance within 1.0 SD for age &education adjusted norms on a neuropsychological test battery

  • Mild cognitive impairment (MCI) participants will show performance on delayed recallor one more or more other cognitive domains worse than 1.5 SD for age & educationadjusted norms, an MMSE score between 25-30, and a MoCA score between 20-30.

Exclusion

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Participants without a computer, smart phone and internet access will be excluded

  • If they cannot understand the informed consent form or have moderate dementia.

  • Mood disorders (e.g., PTSD, depression, anxiety) or alcohol and drug use that eitherinterferes with day-to-day life or required hospitalization within the past 5 years

  • Cerebrovascular disease

  • Any medical condition whose severity could significantly impair cognition (e.g.,stroke, frontotermporal dementia, Parkinson's disease) are exclusionary

Study Design

Total Participants: 100
Treatment Group(s): 2
Primary Treatment: Mindfulness Intervention
Phase:
Study Start date:
January 23, 2025
Estimated Completion Date:
March 31, 2027

Connect with a study center

  • VA Boston Healthcare System - Jamaica Plain Campus

    Boston, Massachusetts 02130
    United States

    Active - Recruiting

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