NCT04829877

Brief Summary

Background: Infertility is a serious reproductive health issue and affects 48.5 million couples worldwide. Women undergoing fertility treatment often experienced psychological distress but also social stigma that is close linked to later pregnancy outcome. Despite the advancement in assisted reproductive technology, effective interventions for reducing stress, anxiety, and depressive symptoms for infertility women remain lacking. Objectives: The objective of this proposal is to evaluate the efficacy of web-based mind-body intervention combining HRV biofeedback on the infertility women's anxiety symptoms, levels of depression, HRV function, mindful awareness, infertility self-efficacy, and pregnancy rates. Methods: We plan to conduct a randomized controlled trial on the web-based mind-body intervention combining heart rate variability biofeedback. Eligible women will be recruited and randomized into three groups. Intention-to-treat analysis and mixed regression modeling will be used to estimate the effectiveness of the interventions. Anticipatory results: Effective strategies will be determined for infertility women.

Trial Health

57
Monitor

Trial Health Score

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

Trial has exceeded expected completion date
Enrollment
750

participants targeted

Target at P75+ for not_applicable

Timeline
Completed

Started Apr 2022

Typical duration for not_applicable

Geographic Reach
1 country

1 active site

Status
recruiting

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

March 31, 2021

Completed
2 days until next milestone

First Posted

Study publicly available on registry

April 2, 2021

Completed
1 year until next milestone

Study Start

First participant enrolled

April 19, 2022

Completed
3 years until next milestone

Primary Completion

Last participant's last visit for primary outcome

April 1, 2025

Completed
Same day until next milestone

Study Completion

Last participant's last visit for all outcomes

April 1, 2025

Completed
Last Updated

January 27, 2025

Status Verified

January 1, 2025

Enrollment Period

3 years

First QC Date

March 31, 2021

Last Update Submit

January 24, 2025

Conditions

Keywords

infertilitymind-body interventionheart rate variabilitybiofeedbackpsychological distress

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (5)

  • Anxiety

    Anxiety symptoms will be assessed using the Taiwanese version of the State Anxiety Inventory (SAI).

    Baseline

  • Anxiety

    Anxiety symptoms will be assessed using the Taiwanese version of the State Anxiety Inventory (SAI).

    1 week post-intervention

  • Anxiety

    Anxiety symptoms will be assessed using the Taiwanese version of the State Anxiety Inventory (SAI).

    1 month post-intervention

  • Anxiety

    Anxiety symptoms will be assessed using the Taiwanese version of the State Anxiety Inventory (SAI).

    2 month post-intervention

  • Anxiety

    Anxiety symptoms will be assessed using the Taiwanese version of the State Anxiety Inventory (SAI).

    3 month post-intervention

Secondary Outcomes (5)

  • Depressive symptoms

    Baseline, post-intervention 1 week, month 1 , 2 and 3

  • HRV function

    Baseline, post-intervention 1 week, month 1 , 2 and 3

  • Mindful awareness

    Baseline, post-intervention 1 week, month 1 , 2 and 3

  • Infertility self-efficacy

    Baseline, post-intervention 1 week, month 1 , 2 and 3

  • Pregnancy rates

    15 days after embryo transfer or ultrasound

Study Arms (3)

Web-based mind-body intervention with HRVB

EXPERIMENTAL

Both standard usual care and the web-based mind-body intervention with HRV biofeedback (MBI-HRVB) will be provided to the participants. The web-based mind-body intervention with HRV biofeedback program consisted of 5-week training sessions and breathing training.

Behavioral: Web-based mind-body intervention with HRVB

Web-based mind-body intervention

EXPERIMENTAL

Both standard usual care and the web-based mind-body intervention will be provided to the participants. The web-based mind-body intervention program consisted of 5-week training sessions.

Behavioral: Web-based mind-body intervention

Control

NO INTERVENTION

The women in the control group will receive the standard usual care provided at the fertility clinic. The standard care protocols encompass elements such as routine assessment and health education at each visit. Participants enrolled in the control group will be approached once a week by a nurse to provide health consultation about fertility treatment, medication, signs, and symptoms of discomfort for five weeks.

Interventions

The web-based mind-body intervention with HRVB contains the following components: 1) Breathing training with HRV biofeedback; 2) 5 different topics will be included ; 3) Home exercise of slow breathing and mindfulness exercise.

Web-based mind-body intervention with HRVB

The web-based mind-body intervention will receive 5 different topics courses.

Web-based mind-body intervention

Eligibility Criteria

Age20 Years - 60 Years
Sexfemale
Healthy VolunteersYes
Age GroupsAdult (18-64)

You may qualify if:

  • year-old and above
  • Seeking infertility care
  • Contemplating pregnancy
  • Intended to start their ART cycle
  • Able to speak Taiwanese or Mandarin

You may not qualify if:

  • Diagnosis of cardiovascular disease, depressive disorder, anxiety disorder, cardiac arrhythmia
  • Already had started their ART treatment
  • Taking medications that might affect ANS activity

Contact the study team to confirm eligibility.

Sponsors & Collaborators

Study Sites (1)

Infertility clinic

Taipei, 110, Taiwan

RECRUITING

MeSH Terms

Conditions

Infertility

Condition Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Genital DiseasesUrogenital Diseases

Study Officials

  • Shu-Yu Kuo, Phd

    Taipei Medical University

    PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR

Central Study Contacts

Shu-Yu Kuo, Phd

CONTACT

Study Design

Study Type
interventional
Phase
not applicable
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Masking
SINGLE
Who Masked
OUTCOMES ASSESSOR
Purpose
HEALTH SERVICES RESEARCH
Intervention Model
PARALLEL
Sponsor Type
OTHER
Responsible Party
PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR
PI Title
Principal investigator

Study Record Dates

First Submitted

March 31, 2021

First Posted

April 2, 2021

Study Start

April 19, 2022

Primary Completion

April 1, 2025

Study Completion

April 1, 2025

Last Updated

January 27, 2025

Record last verified: 2025-01

Locations