NCT04526639

Brief Summary

Childhood traumatic brain injury (TBI) poses significant impairment in children's executive functions (EFs) for moderate to severe injuries, yet interventions specifically designed for children's EF rehabilitation post-TBI and rigorous clinical trials to establish the efficacy of such interventions remain unavailable. In this study, the investigators will conduct a randomized clinical trial to evaluate the efficacy of a novel virtual reality (VR)-based training program for EF rehabilitation for childhood TBI.

Trial Health

87
On Track

Trial Health Score

Automated assessment based on enrollment pace, timeline, and geographic reach

Enrollment
14

participants targeted

Target at below P25 for not_applicable

Timeline
Completed

Started Sep 2021

Typical duration for not_applicable

Geographic Reach
1 country

2 active sites

Status
completed

Health score is calculated from publicly available data and should be used for screening purposes only.

Trial Relationships

Click on a node to explore related trials.

Study Timeline

Key milestones and dates

First Submitted

Initial submission to the registry

August 18, 2020

Completed
8 days until next milestone

First Posted

Study publicly available on registry

August 26, 2020

Completed
1 year until next milestone

Study Start

First participant enrolled

September 3, 2021

Completed
3 years until next milestone

Primary Completion

Last participant's last visit for primary outcome

August 31, 2024

Completed
Same day until next milestone

Study Completion

Last participant's last visit for all outcomes

August 31, 2024

Completed
1.1 years until next milestone

Results Posted

Study results publicly available

October 16, 2025

Completed
Last Updated

October 16, 2025

Status Verified

September 1, 2025

Enrollment Period

3 years

First QC Date

August 18, 2020

Results QC Date

August 14, 2025

Last Update Submit

September 30, 2025

Conditions

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (1)

  • VR-based EF Assessment Task

    Performance-based executive function assessment Task in the virtual reality environment built by the research team. There are three tasks within this measurement, each transformed into a z score and summed up to serve as the total score for this measure. A Z-score of 0 in each task represents the sample mean. Higher values represent a better outcome for this measure.

    Baseline (at recruitment/before intervention), Post-Intervention (after completion of intervention, up to 2 weeks), Follow-Up (up to 6 months after completion of intervention)

Secondary Outcomes (3)

  • NIH Toolbox Cognition Battery

    Baseline (at recruitment/before intervention), Post-Intervention (after completion of intervention, up to 2 weeks), Follow-Up (up to 6 months after completion of intervention)

  • Report-based EF Skills

    Follow-Up (up to 6 months after completion of intervention)

  • Health-related Quality of Life

    Follow-Up (up to 6 months after completion of intervention)

Other Outcomes (3)

  • Motion Sickness

    Post-Intervention, up to 2 weeks

  • Perceived Exertion

    Post-Intervention, up to 2 weeks

  • Perceived VR Experience

    Post-Intervention, up to 2 weeks

Study Arms (2)

Virtual Reality games for training executive functions

EXPERIMENTAL

Virtual Reality games for training three core executive functions

Behavioral: Virtual Reality-based Interactive Cognitive Training Program

Control VR Game on Playground

PLACEBO COMPARATOR

A relaxing virtual reality game for control group to play in VR playground without training their executive functions

Behavioral: Placebo Virtual Reality Game

Interventions

Three virtual reality-based games designed to train inhibitory control, working memory, and cognitive flexibility among children with TBI

Virtual Reality games for training executive functions

A virtual playground for control group to interact without training executive functions

Control VR Game on Playground

Eligibility Criteria

AgeUp to 18 Years
Sexall
Healthy VolunteersNo
Age GroupsChild (0-17), Adult (18-64)

You may qualify if:

  • diagnosed with TBI within the past 12 months and under 18 years at the time of injury;
  • fluent in English; and 3) Score \<28 on the Agitated Behavior Scale (if available).

You may not qualify if:

  • comorbidities or premorbid disorders that prevent proper administration of VR and study measures,
  • restriction from using electronic devices,
  • post-injury seizure activity.

Contact the study team to confirm eligibility.

Sponsors & Collaborators

Study Sites (2)

Kennedy Krieger Institute

Baltimore, Maryland, 21205, United States

Location

Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital

Boston, Massachusetts, 02114, United States

Location

Related Publications (1)

  • Shen J, Wang Y, Quinn S, Suskauer SJ, Birch J, Busch T, Svingos A, Crawfis R, Yeates KO, Taylor HG. Efficacy of a virtual reality-based cognitive interactive training program for children with traumatic brain injuries: study protocol for a parallel-group randomized controlled trial. Trials. 2024 Mar 13;25(1):185. doi: 10.1186/s13063-024-08049-1.

MeSH Terms

Conditions

Brain Injuries, Traumatic

Condition Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Brain InjuriesBrain DiseasesCentral Nervous System DiseasesNervous System DiseasesCraniocerebral TraumaTrauma, Nervous SystemWounds and Injuries

Limitations and Caveats

We encountered significant challenges in patient recruitment during the study period from the pandemic and post-pandemic eras, mostly impacted by significant decrease in available patient volumes as well as shortage and high-turnover of research staff. Recruitment is much lower than anticipated. Therefore, results from this study should be interpreted with caution of the small sample size and variability of the participant characteristics within the sample.

Results Point of Contact

Title
Jiabin Shen
Organization
University of Massachusetts Lowell

Study Officials

  • Jiabin Shen, PhD

    University of Massachusetts, Lowell

    PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR

Publication Agreements

PI is Sponsor Employee
No
Restrictive Agreement
No

Study Design

Study Type
interventional
Phase
not applicable
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Masking
TRIPLE
Who Masked
PARTICIPANT, CARE PROVIDER, OUTCOMES ASSESSOR
Purpose
TREATMENT
Intervention Model
PARALLEL
Sponsor Type
OTHER
Responsible Party
PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR
PI Title
Assistant Professor, Psychology

Study Record Dates

First Submitted

August 18, 2020

First Posted

August 26, 2020

Study Start

September 3, 2021

Primary Completion

August 31, 2024

Study Completion

August 31, 2024

Last Updated

October 16, 2025

Results First Posted

October 16, 2025

Record last verified: 2025-09

Data Sharing

IPD Sharing
Will share

The de-identified datasets and associated documents will be deposited and made available to the public through NICHD Data and Specimen Hub (DASH). DASH has policies and procedures in place that are fully consistent with the NIH Data Sharing Policies and applicable laws and regulations. The final dataset will include demographic and clinical data associated with the nature and severity of patients' injuries, self/parent-reported psychological and behavioral data, performance data on cognitive outcomes. Submitted data will confirm with relevant data and terminology standards as well as policies at NIH, NICHD, and DASH.

Shared Documents
STUDY PROTOCOL
Time Frame
Data will be deposited to NICHD DASH within one year after the acceptance for publication of the main findings.
Access Criteria
The data will be accessible to the public through NICHD DASH under a carefully-constructed and closely-monitored Data Use Agreement (DUA) following the NICHD DASH DUA template. This will ensure that requesters are (1) committed to using the data shared only for research purposes as approved by the requester's institutional IRB and not to identify any individual participant; (2) committed to securing the data shared using appropriate safety measures and computer technology; (3) committed to not redistribute the shared data to third parties not approved in the DUA, and (4) committed to destroying the data shared after analyses for the intended research are completed, among other measures to ensure the confidentiality of data and protection of subjects' privacy.

Locations