Use of Psychologist-administered Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) or Self-administered CBT for the Treatment of Anxiety and/or Depression in Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD)

June 10, 2026 updated by: Yale University

Effect Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) in the Treatment of Anxiety and Depression in Patients With Inflammatory Bowel Disease

This is a prospective, single center, randomized treatment study to assess if anxiety and depression in participants with IBD can be improved with CBT compared to those treated with SKY.

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 is a prospective, single center, randomized treatment study, where participants will be screened for anxiety and depression in an inflammatory bowel disease (Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis) population using the Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD) questionnaire and the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ). Participants with GAD scores of ≥8 will be considered to have anxiety and those with a PHQ score of ≥10 will be considered to have depression. All participants with screening questionnaire scores positive for anxiety or depression will be randomized to treatment with either cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) with a clinical psychologist (virtual visits) or CBT using a book written for IBD patients. The GAD and PHQ surveys will be repeated post treatment at weeks 6, 12 and 24. The primary objective of this study is to assess for an improvement in GAD and PHQ scores among subjects treated with CBT comparing 2 modalities of CBT. The secondary objectives are to assess for improvements in health-related quality of life, based on short IBD Questionnaire scores; assess for improvement in pain scores, based on the Brief Pain Inventory Short Form; and assess for improvement in fatigue scores based on the FACIT-Fatigue Scale, among subjects with poor scores at baseline following treatment with CBT.

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.
13

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 Contact

Study Contact

The name and contact information for the person who can answer enrollment questions for a clinical study. Each location where the study is being conducted may also have a specific contact, who may be better able to answer those questions.

Study Locations

  • United States
    • Connecticut
      • New Haven, Connecticut, United States, 06520
        • Yale New Haven 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

No

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • verified inflammatory bowel disease (Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis)
  • IBD patients on a stable treatment regimen with no evidence of active intestinal inflammation based on either normal c-reactive protein and/or fecal calprotectin, imaging studies, or endoscopy who meet the criteria for anxiety or depression based on the screening questionnaires
  • subjects who have been on stable doses of anxiety and/or depression medications (defined as no dose adjustment in the prior 12 weeks) at the screening visit who meet the criteria for anxiety and/or depression based on screening questionnaires and are willing to stay on the same dose of these medications throughout the study duration
  • may meet the criteria for both anxiety and depression and cohort assignment will be based on the survey with the highest scores suggesting more severe symptoms

Exclusion Criteria:

  • declines to participate for the full duration of the study
  • evidence of active intestinal inflammation based on an elevated c-reactive protein and/or fecal calprotectin, imaging studies or endoscopy
  • non-English speaker
  • any subject who expresses suicidal ideation or has severe mental illness as they will be taken to the emergency room for urgent psychiatric care

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: Treatment
  • Allocation: Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
  • Masking: None (Open Label)

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.
Active Comparator: Psychologist-administered Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
Participants in this arm will participate in psychologist-administered CBT to assess the impact it will have on anxiety or depression among patients with inflammatory bowel disease
Behavioral: Psychologist-administered Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
CBT is a combined psycho-social intervention that aims to improve overall mental health focusing on developing coping strategies. For psychologist-administered CBT: Participants will have individual weekly sessions (virtually) lasting 60 minutes each over an 8-week period with 1 follow-up maintenance session at week 12.
Experimental: Self-administered Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
Participants in this arm will be given a patient education book that teaches how to self-administer cognitive behavioral therapy to assess the impact it will have on anxiety or depression among patients with inflammatory bowel disease
Behavioral: Self-Administered Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
CBT is a combined psycho-social intervention that aims to improve overall mental health focusing on developing coping strategies. For self-administered CBT: Participants will be given a book written for patients on CBT for IBD with instructions on how to self-administer CBT.

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
Change from baseline in anxiety scores using the Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7 (GAD-7) questionnaire
Time Frame: baseline, week 6, week 12, week 24 and week 52
Change from baseline in anxiety using GAD-7 compared to week 6, week 12 and week 24 (post treatment). Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7 questionnaire is a 7-item validated questionnaire used to screen for anxiety with a range of scores from 0-3. A cumulative score of ≥8 is considered positive for anxiety with lower scores indicating no or mild anxiety.
baseline, week 6, week 12, week 24 and week 52
Change from baseline in depression scores using the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9)
Time Frame: baseline, week 6, week 12, week 24, and week 52
Change from baseline in depression using PHQ-9 compared to week 6, week 12 and week 24 (post treatment). PHQ-9 is a 9-item validated questionnaire used to screen for depression with a range of scores from 0-45. A cumulative score of ≥10 is considered positive with lower scores indicating no or mild anxiety.
baseline, week 6, week 12, week 24, and week 52

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.
Yale University

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.
Crohn's & Colitis Foundation of America (CCFA)

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: Jill Gaidos, MD, FACG, Yale University

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.
July 5, 2022

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.
June 6, 2026

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.
June 6, 2026

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).
May 11, 2022

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.
May 11, 2022

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.
May 17, 2022

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.
June 12, 2026

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.
June 10, 2026

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.
June 1, 2026

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.
  • 2000031323
  • 878888 (Other Grant/Funding Number: Crohn's & Colitis Foundation of America (CCFA))

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.

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