Happy Mother - Healthy Baby: Supplement Study on Biological Processes Underlying Anxiety During Pregnancy (HMHB-Bio)

October 30, 2024 updated by: Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health

Biological Processes Underlying Anxiety During Pregnancy: A Substudy of an Anxiety-focused Early Prenatal Intervention for the Prevention of Common Mental Disorders in Pakistan

As a supplement to the ongoing randomized evaluation of the Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) anxiety prevention intervention in Pakistan (R01-MH111859), the investigators propose to explore potential biological mechanisms (related to inflammation and endocrine functioning) of antenatal anxiety through additional data collection with 300 pregnant women.

Study Overview

Status

Status

Indicates the current recruitment status or the expanded access status.
Completed

Conditions

Conditions

The disease, disorder, syndrome, illness, or injury that is being studied. On ClinicalTrials.gov, conditions may also include other health-related issues, such as lifespan, quality of life, and health risks.

Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.

Detailed Description

This study will leverage the ongoing randomized evaluation of the CBT anxiety prevention intervention in Pakistan (R01-MH111859) to explore potential biological mechanisms. This CBT intervention targets both sub-threshold anxiety symptoms and generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) in early- to mid- pregnancy, aiming to both prevent and treat Common Mental Disorders (CMDs) (GAD and major depressive episodes (MDE)) as well as improve birth outcomes. The study team proposes to additionally study biological correlates of antenatal anxiety (i.e., immune and endocrine functioning) in 300 women: in addition to 200 drawn from our randomized trial (100 intervention, 100 usual care), the study will also include 100 healthy women without anxiety or depression. The aims are to 1) characterize the "immune phenotype" of anxious women across the peripartum, specifically by measuring the relation among anxiety symptoms and peripheral markers of inflammation within and across women (both anxious and healthy) and between those receiving the intervention and control; 2) determine the relation between levels of allopregnanolone (ALLO) in pregnancy and concurrent anxiety symptoms and future symptoms of postpartum depression (PPD), 3) examine the relation between changes in immune functioning and ALLO levels in anxious pregnancy across time, 4) examine whether immune function and/or ALLO are mediators or moderators of the association between antenatal anxiety and preterm birth and/or small-for-gestational age, and 5) examine the effects of both anxiety and the intervention (including biomarkers) on infant development at six weeks postpartum.

Study Type

Study Type

Describes the nature of a clinical study. Study types include interventional studies (also called clinical trials), observational studies (including patient registries), and expanded access.
Interventional

Enrollment (Actual)

Enrollment

The number of participants in a clinical study. The "anticipated" enrollment is the target number of participants that the researchers need for the study.
117

Phase

Phase

The stage of a clinical trial studying a drug or biological product, based on definitions developed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The phase is based on the study's objective, the number of participants, and other characteristics. There are five phases: Early Phase 1 (formerly listed as Phase 0), Phase 1, Phase 2, Phase 3, and Phase 4. Not Applicable is used to describe trials without FDA-defined phases, including trials of devices or behavioral interventions.
  • Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Locations

  • Pakistan
      • Rawalpindi, Pakistan
        • Holy Family Hospital

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

The key requirements that people who want to participate in a clinical study must meet or the characteristics they must have. Eligibility criteria consist of both inclusion criteria (which are required for a person to participate in the study) and exclusion criteria (which prevent a person from participating). Types of eligibility criteria include whether a study accepts healthy volunteers, has age or age group requirements, or is limited by sex.

Ages Eligible for Study

18 years and older (Adult, Older Adult)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • ability to understand spoken Urdu
  • pregnant, ≤22 weeks' gestation
  • age ≥18 years
  • residence ≤20 km of Holy Family Hospital
  • intent to reside in the study areas until the completion of the study

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Current anemia
  • Current major depressive episode (MDE on SCID) or life-threatening health conditions including e.g. active severe depression or suicidal ideation
  • Self-report of past or current significant learning disability
  • Self-report of past or current psychiatric disorder (e.g. bipolar disorder or schizophrenia) or psychiatric care (e.g. current use of anxiolytic drug and/or other psychotropic drug)
  • medical disorders or severe maternal morbidity that require inpatient management that would preclude participation (101)
  • ICU admission indicated by diagnosis (not only for assessment)

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Basic Science
  • Allocation: Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
  • Masking: Double

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm

Participant Group / Arm

A group or subgroup of participants in a clinical trial that receives a specific intervention/treatment, or no intervention, according to the trial's protocol.
Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.
Experimental: Anxious pregnant women - intervention group
100 pregnant women who have at least mild anxiety will be randomized to the intervention group where they will receive six one-on-one core sessions of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy during pregnancy (plus possible booster sessions)
Behavioral: Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) for anxiety during pregnancy
Women who are randomized to the intervention group will receive six core Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) sessions for anxiety during pregnancy (and possible booster sessions) to treat symptoms of anxiety.
No Intervention: Anxious pregnant women - enhanced usual care group
100 pregnant women who have at least mild anxiety will be randomized to the enhanced usual care group. Reminder calls were given, provider visits were facilitated (shorter wait times), and transportation to assist participants in attending appointments and medically indicated ultrasounds were paid for (as in the other group).
No Intervention: Non-anxious pregnant women - healthy control
100 pregnant women who do not have symptoms of anxiety or depression be followed in the healthy control group. Reminder calls were given, provider visits were facilitated (shorter wait times), and transportation to assist participants in attending appointments and medically indicated ultrasounds were paid for (as in the other groups).

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Primary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, the planned outcome measure that is the most important for evaluating the effect of an intervention/treatment. Most clinical studies have one primary outcome measure, but some have more than one.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Peripheral Markers of Inflammation
Time Frame: trimester 1, trimester 2, trimester 3, 6 weeks postpartum
Differences in levels of peripheral inflammatory markers and change in these markers across time (trimester 1 (T1), trimester 2 (T2), trimester 3 (T3) and postpartum (PP)) between anxious and healthy women, and between intervention and control women. Markers include IFNgamma, IL6, IL8, IL10, IL12p70, TNFalpha, IL17A, TARC, MIP1alpha, MCP4, Eotaxin
trimester 1, trimester 2, trimester 3, 6 weeks postpartum
Allopregnanolone Levels and Anxiety Symptoms Across the Peripartum
Time Frame: trimester 2, trimester 3, 6 weeks postpartum

Measure differences in level of allopregnanolone (mean) at each time point and across time (trimester 1 (T1), trimester 2 (T2), trimester 3 (T3) and postpartum (PP)) between anxious women and healthy women, and between intervention and control.

The results are measured by log-transformed values of the concentration of each cytokine in the plasma, in ng/mL (nanogram per milliliter).
trimester 2, trimester 3, 6 weeks postpartum
Allopregnanolone Levels Predicting Postpartum Depression
Time Frame: Trimester 2

Differences in allopregnanolone levels at the second trimester between women who do and do not go on to develop postpartum depression (PPD).

The results are measured by log-transformed values of the concentration of allopregnanolone in the plasma, in ng/ml (nanogram per milliliter.

Women who have Allopregnanolone (ALLO) levels and developed PPD are analyzed.
Trimester 2
Allopregnanolone (ALLO) and Immune Function
Time Frame: trimester 2, trimester 3, 6 weeks postpartum
Measure the relationship between ALLO levels and levels of peripheral inflammatory markers across time (trimester 2 (T2), trimester 3 (T3) and 6 weeks postpartum (W6))
trimester 2, trimester 3, 6 weeks postpartum

Secondary Outcome Measures

Secondary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, a planned outcome measure that is not as important as the primary outcome measure for evaluating the effect of an intervention but is still of interest. Most clinical studies have more than one secondary outcome measure.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Birth Outcomes
Time Frame: at birth
Differences in birth outcomes (preterm birth, small for gestational age, low birth weight) between women with high inflammatory markers vs. those low in inflammatory markers, and also between anxious and healthy women.
at birth
Infant Neuro-development Using Ages & Stages Questionnaire, Third Edition (ASQ-3)
Time Frame: 6 weeks postpartum

Measure infant neuro-development using Ages & Stages Questionnaire to measure differences in infant neurodevelopment (communication, gross motor, fine motor, personal-social and problem solving) using a standardized questionnaire between those high in inflammatory markers vs. those low, and also between anxious and healthy women

communication cut-off score 22.77 gross motor cut-off score 41.84 fine motor cut-off score 30.16 personal-social cut-off score 24.62 problem solving cut-off score 33.71

Number of participants with impaired neuron-developmental infants (below cut-off scores) are reported below
6 weeks postpartum

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Sponsor

The organization or person who initiates the study and who has authority and control over the study.
Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health

Collaborators

Collaborators

An organization other than the sponsor that provides support for a clinical study. This support may include activities related to funding, design, implementation, data analysis, or reporting.
National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH)
University of Liverpool
Human Development Research Foundation, Pakistan
Rawalpindi Medical College, Pakistan

Investigators

Investigators

A researcher involved in a clinical study. Related terms include site principal investigator, site sub-investigator, study chair, study director, and study principal investigator.
  • Principal Investigator: Pamela J Surkan, ScD, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health

Publications and helpful links

The person responsible for entering information about the study voluntarily provides these publications. These may be about anything related to the study.

General Publications

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Actual)

Study Start

The actual date on which the first participant was enrolled in a clinical study. The "anticipated" study start date is the date that the researchers think will be the study start date.
October 20, 2020

Primary Completion (Actual)

Primary Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention to collect final data for the primary outcome measure. Whether the clinical study ended according to the protocol or was terminated does not affect this date. For clinical studies with more than one primary outcome measure with different completion dates, this term refers to the date on which data collection is completed for all the primary outcome measures. The "anticipated" primary completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the primary completion date for the study.
August 31, 2022

Study Completion (Actual)

Study Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention/treatment to collect final data for the primary outcome measures, secondary outcome measures, and adverse events (that is, the last participant's last visit). The "anticipated" study completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the study completion date.
August 31, 2022

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

First Submitted

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submitted a study record to ClinicalTrials.gov. There is typically a delay of a few days between the first submitted date and the record's availability on ClinicalTrials.gov (the first posted date).
September 22, 2020

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submits a study record that is consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. The sponsor or investigator may need to revise and submit a study record one or more times before NLM's QC review criteria are met. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
September 22, 2020

First Posted (Actual)

First Posted

The date on which the study record was first available on ClinicalTrials.gov after National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review has concluded. There is typically a delay of a few days between the date the study sponsor or investigator submitted the study record and the first posted date.
September 28, 2020

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

Last Update Posted

The most recent date on which changes to a study record were made available on ClinicalTrials.gov. There may be a delay between when the changes were submitted to ClinicalTrials.gov by the study's sponsor or investigator (the last update submitted date) and the last update posted date.
November 20, 2024

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator submitted changes to a study record that are consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
October 30, 2024

Last Verified

Last Verified

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator confirmed the information about a clinical study on ClinicalTrials.gov as accurate and current. If a study with a recruitment status of recruiting; not yet recruiting; or active, not recruiting has not been confirmed within the past 2 years, the study's recruitment status is shown as unknown.
October 1, 2024

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

Other Study ID Numbers

Identifiers or ID numbers other than the NCT number that are assigned to a clinical study by the study's sponsor, funders, or others. These numbers may include unique identifiers from other trial registries and National Institutes of Health grant numbers.
  • 3R01MH111859-03S1 (U.S. NIH Grant/Contract)

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

YES

IPD Plan Description

De-identified project data from the study will be posted on ClinicalTrials.gov and the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) data archive.

IPD Sharing Time Frame

The study protocol, statistical analysis plan and informed consent form are available upon request now.

IPD Sharing Access Criteria

The can be access upon request from the study PI: psurkan@jhu.edu

IPD Sharing Supporting Information Type

  • STUDY_PROTOCOL
  • SAP
  • ICF

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

Cookie Settings

We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. For more details carefully read our Privacy and Cookies Policy. ...>>>You can change your preferences or withdraw your consent at any time by deleting the cookies from your website or computer as described in the policy. Please accept it and choose your preferences by ticking the corresponding boxes in the "Manage Settings" section below. Please carefully read our Terms of Service before you proceed with using any part of this website.
«Manage Settings