Online Meditation for Mild Cognitive Impairment and Mild Dementia

NCT06768450 | Not Yet Recruiting

• 1 other identifier: 341708
• Study Type: interventional
• Target: 32
• Locations: 0 countries
• Sites: N/A

Brief Summary

The study will look at whether online mindfulness meditation (OMM) is easy for older adults with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and mild dementia to use. It will also see how OMM affects their mood, sleep, and quality of life. The investigators will recruit 32 participants, divided into 4 groups of 8 people each. Participants will:

• Attend an online mindfulness meditation class once a week for 8 weeks
• Practice at home for 20 minutes each day
• Keep a simple record of their practice and feelings

Conditions

Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI); Dementia

Keywords

Dementia; Mild cognitive impairment; Feasibility; Acceptability; Online; Mindfulness; Meditation

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (4)

• Conversion rate

  Conversion Rate= Number of participants enrolled / Number of potential participants contacted × 100%

  through study completion, an average of 1 year

• Retention rate

  Retention Rate (%)= Number of participants who completed the study / Number of participants initially enrolled × 100%

  through study completion, an average of 1 year

• Attrition rate

  Attrition Rate (%)= Number of participants who dropped out / Total number of participants initially enrolled × 100%

  through study completion, an average of 1 year

• Client Satisfaction Questionnaire

  It is a standardized 8-item tool that has demonstrated good reliability and validity in mental health services. Items are scored from 1 (low satisfaction) to 4 (high satisfaction) with different descriptors for each response point. Total scores range from 8 to 32, with higher scores indicating greater satisfaction.

  immediately after the intervention

Secondary Outcomes (3)

• Modified Telephone Interview for Cognitive Status

  baseline and immediately after the intervention

• Pittsburgh sleep quality index

  baseline and immediately after the intervention

• Hospital anxiety and depression scale

  baseline and immediately after the intervention

Study Arms (1)

Online mindfulness meditation arm

EXPERIMENTAL

Participants over 60 years old with mild cognitive impairment or mild dementia will be recruited. An 8-week online meditation training program will be provided.

Behavioral: Online mindfulness meditation

Interventions

Online mindfulness meditation BEHAVIORAL

The mindfulness meditation program is adapted from the Breathwork Mindfulness for Stress program. However, it uses shorter meditations designed for individuals who cannot sit for 40 minutes. The mindfulness meditation program encourages greater self-acceptance, kindness, and compassion toward oneself. It builds on this concept by helping participants find pleasure in life despite suffering, fostering kindness and compassion toward others, and increasing social connections to counteract the social isolation common among individuals with chronic and long-term illnesses. The program will be led by a well-trained Breathwork mindfulness instructor and conducted remotely via Microsoft Teams once a week for 8 weeks. Each session will last 2 to 2.5 hours and consist of body scans, mindful movements, and various meditations, introducing new ideas every week.

Online mindfulness meditation arm

Eligibility Criteria

• Age: 60 Years+
• Sex: all
• Healthy Volunteers: No
• Age Groups: Adult (18-64), Older Adult (65+)

You may qualify if:

• Age 60 years or older.
• MCI: Concern regarding a change in cognition, with impairment in one or more cognitive domains, including memory, executive function, attention, language, and visuospatial skills. Preservation of independence in functional abilities and does not meet the criteria for dementia, as described in the National Institute on Aging and Alzheimer's Association (NIA-AA) diagnostic guidelines.
• Mild dementia: As described in the NIA-AA research framework, mild dementia is defined as substantial progressive cognitive impairment affecting several domains and/or neurobehavioral disturbances. Documented by the individual's report, an observer (e.g., a study partner) report, or by changes observed on longitudinal cognitive testing. Clearly evident functional impact on daily life, mainly affecting instrumental activities. No longer fully independent and requires occasional assistance with daily activities.
• Access to an electronic device (e.g., smartphone, computer, or tablet) and the internet.
• Ability and willingness to provide informed consent by signing the Consent Form.

You may not qualify if:

• Current active or past significant experience with meditation.
• Clinically significant mental or physical health disorder beyond MCI or dementia that may affect cognition and/or the ability to complete the study (e.g., severe depression, suicidality, psychosis, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), major psychiatric diagnoses, social anxiety (e.g., difficulty participating in a group setting), or severe impairments in eyesight, hearing, or upper limb motor movements).
• Inability to commit to attending classes (e.g., planning to miss three or more classes).
• Lack of proficiency in English.
• Diagnosed with moderate or severe dementia.

Sponsors & Collaborators

• King's College London: lead

Related Publications (1)

• You J, Khan Z, Swaroop R, Sun Y, Velayudhan L, Aarsland D. Online mindfulness meditation for mild cognitive impairment and mild dementia: A feasibility study protocol. PLoS One. 2025 Nov 25;20(11):e0336583. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0336583. eCollection 2025.

  PMID: 41289241 DERIVED

MeSH Terms

Conditions

Cognitive Dysfunction; Dementia

Condition Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Cognition Disorders; Neurocognitive Disorders; Mental Disorders; Brain Diseases; Central Nervous System Diseases; Nervous System Diseases

Central Study Contacts

Jiuhong You

CONTACT

+447562739403; jiuhong.you@kcl.ac.uk

Zunera Khan

CONTACT

zunera.2.khan@kcl.ac.uk

Study Design

• Study Type: interventional
• Phase: not applicable
• Allocation: NA
• Masking: NONE
• Purpose: SUPPORTIVE CARE
• Intervention Model: SINGLE GROUP
• Sponsor Type: OTHER
• Responsible Party: SPONSOR

Study Record Dates

• First Submitted: September 13, 2024
• First Posted: January 10, 2025
• Study Start: July 1, 2025
• Primary Completion: May 1, 2026
• Study Completion (Estimated): July 1, 2026
• Last Updated: January 16, 2025

Record last verified: 2024-09