Use of Conversation and Acoustic Signals in Measuring Depression Severity

NCT00831935 | Completed

• 1 other identifier: 1R21MH080819-01A1
• Study Type: observational
• Target: 89
• Locations: 1 country
• Sites: 2

Brief Summary

The purpose of this study is to test a new monitoring technology that uses the sound of a depressed person's speech to assess the severity of depression symptoms. The Vocal Social Signals Platform (VSSP) is software that analyzes the non-verbal characteristics of a person's speech. This study will test this software to see if it could be a useful measurement tool for assessing depression symptoms. Participation in this study requires coming to the research headquarters twice over a three-month period. The first visit is to determine eligibility. Throughout the study, participants will be connected to a telephone system five times, on which they will answer questions about their depression symptoms. After answering questions, their voice will be recorded using a structured speech sample that the participant will read out loud. The participant will also give an unstructured speech sample, which will involve describing a typical day or the last movie s/he saw. The voice samples will be analyzed and compared to the results of the depression symptom questionnaires.

Conditions

Depression

Keywords

Acoustic properties of voice in depression

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (1)

• Inventory of Depressive Symptomatology (IDS)

  3 months

Study Arms (2)

Depressed

Depressed individuals, as identified by their referring physician.

Non-depressed

Non-depressed individuals, confirmed to be non-depressed by the Centers for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale (CES-D).

Eligibility Criteria

• Age: 18 Years+
• Sex: all
• Healthy Volunteers: Yes
• Age Groups: Adult (18-64), Older Adult (65+)
• Sampling Method: Non-Probability Sample

Study Population

Community sample - residents in Boston, Massachusetts area and those referred from Boston Medical Center primary care and psychiatry departments.

You may qualify if:

• Be \> 18 years of age.
• Speak, understand and read conversational English.
• A clinical diagnosis of Major Depressive Disorder in the past 2 weeks.

You may not qualify if:

• Not having access to a telephone at home or on the person (cell phone) or at work.
• Planning to leave Boston during the study period.
• Having a long history of smoking, which is defined as 1 pack per day for 10 years or more.
• Meeting the criteria for alcohol abuse.
• Having one of the following mental illnesses based on attached instruments: Social Anxiety, Bipolar Disorder (BD) or Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD).
• Having a life threatening and/or chronic health condition such as organic brain disease, e.g., Alzheimers' Disease and other dementias, cancer, HIV or other autoimmune diseases, diabetes, heart disease, renal failure, etc.
• Having a physical condition, such as one of the following, that could affect the acoustic characteristics of speech or a condition that can alter vocal production by affecting the mouth, larynx, trachea, lungs, thorax, nose, nasal passages and sinuses, ears and hearing:
• Neurological events or diseases such as stroke, ALS, brain injury, brain tumors, Parkinson's disease, Huntington's disease and multiple sclerosis
• Chronic allergic conditions such as allergic rhinitis
• Upper or lower respiratory track infections such as sinusitis
• GERD (acid reflux)
• Anatomic abnormalities such as deviated nasal septum
• Speech impairment, as determined by the research staff
• Any other permanent, chronic or intermittent conditions that affect the quality of speech

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Boston Medical Center: lead

Study Sites (2)

Boston Medical Center

Boston, Massachusetts, 02118, United States

Location

Boston University Medical Campus

Boston, Massachusetts, 02118, United States

Location

MeSH Terms

Conditions

Depression

Condition Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Behavioral Symptoms; Behavior

Study Officials

• Ramesh Farzanfar, Ph.D

  Boston University

  PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR

Study Design

• Study Type: observational
• Observational Model: COHORT
• Time Perspective: PROSPECTIVE
• Sponsor Type: OTHER
• Responsible Party: SPONSOR

Study Record Dates

• First Submitted: May 22, 2008
• First Posted: January 29, 2009
• Study Start: January 1, 2009
• Primary Completion: June 1, 2011
• Study Completion: June 1, 2011
• Last Updated: April 8, 2013

Record last verified: 2013-04

Locations

US (2)