Communication Bridge Pilot Study (CB3_1)

August 6, 2025 updated by: University of Chicago

Communication Bridge: Optimizing an Evidence-based Intervention for Individuals With Primary Progressive Aphasia

The aim of this study is to evaluate the effectiveness and feasibility of evidence-based interventions in individuals living with mild to moderate primary progressive aphasia (PPA) that address communication-focused outcomes.

Study Overview

Status

Active, not recruiting

Conditions

Intervention / Treatment

Detailed Description

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the effectiveness and feasibility of evidence-based interventions in individuals living with mild to moderate primary progressive aphasia (PPA) that address communication-focused outcomes. The study team aims to enhance the personal relevance and therapeutic impact of goal attainment scaling (GAS) while building self-efficacy within a self-management framework.

This study will be a continuation of one of the largest non-pharmacologic intervention studies for individuals with PPA to date. It will add critical information regarding the effectiveness of telepractice interventions for communication disorders in adults with primary progressive aphasia specifically, and in dementia more broadly. The goal of this study is to maximize functional communication and life participation for the participants.

Study Type

Interventional

Enrollment (Estimated)

12

Phase

  • 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 Backup

Study Locations

    • Illinois
      • Chicago, Illinois, United States, 60637
        • University of Chicago - American School Building

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

Ages Eligible for Study

  • Adult
  • Older Adult

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Description

Inclusion Criteria (person with PPA):

  1. Meets diagnostic criteria for PPA based on neurologist and supporting medical assessments (extracted from medical records)
  2. English as primary language used in daily communication activities (by self-report)
  3. Adequate hearing (aided or unaided) for communicating with others in a crowded room (by self-report)
  4. Adequate vision (aided or unaided) for reading a newspaper, or other functional materials (by self-report)
  5. Able to pass technology screening and demonstrates sufficient knowledge for use of video conference and Communication Bridge™ web application use (with or without training)
  6. Geriatric Depression Scale score ≤ 9
  7. Mild-moderate PPA informed by a structured interview with a speech-language pathologist and a standardized testing battery.

Inclusion Criteria (Co-enrolled communication partner):

  1. 18+ years of age
  2. English as primary language used in daily communication activities (by self-report)
  3. Adequate hearing (aided or unaided) for communicating with others in a crowded room (by self-report)
  4. Able to pass technology screening* and demonstrates sufficient knowledge for use of video conference and Communication Bridge™ web application use (with or without training)

Exclusion Criteria:

  • A dementia diagnosis other than Primary Progressive Aphasia
  • Participation is co-enrolled in an outside speech language therapy program during the study course.
  • Communication partners will be excluded if they have a pre-existing communication impairment that would affect study participation (e.g., aphasia, dementia) Medical records will be requested and reviewed to determine eligibility

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: N/A
  • Interventional Model: Single Group Assignment
  • Masking: None (Open Label)

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm
Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: Communication Bridge™
Participants receive Communication Bridge™, a multi-component, participation-focused, dyadic intervention in which both the person with PPA and their co-enrolled communication partner are intervention recipients. Communication Bridge™ is modelled on the Living with Aphasia: Framework for Outcome Measurement (A-FROM) and the Care Pathway Model that was developed for persons living with primary progressive aphasia. Consistent with participation-focused intervention models personally salient training stimuli are incorporated into all therapy activities in the Experimental arm.
Evidence-based speech language therapy treatment will be compared and contrasted in the two arms of the study.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Change in Communication Participation Person Centered Goals
Time Frame: Time Frame: 2 assessment time points through study completion, an average of 5 months, including change over time
Goal Attainment Scaling, a 7-point rating scale with -3 representing 'no longer participating' and +3 representing 'exceeded goal'. Higher scores indicate better progress in goal achievement.
Time Frame: 2 assessment time points through study completion, an average of 5 months, including change over time

Collaborators and Investigators

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

Sponsor

Collaborators

Investigators

  • Principal Investigator: Emily Roglaski, PhD, Professor of Neurology

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)

June 28, 2024

Primary Completion (Estimated)

May 31, 2026

Study Completion (Estimated)

May 31, 2026

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

January 8, 2024

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

January 8, 2024

First Posted (Actual)

January 18, 2024

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

August 7, 2025

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

August 6, 2025

Last Verified

August 1, 2025

More Information

Terms related to this study

Other Study ID Numbers

  • IRB23-1620
  • 7R01AG055425-07 (U.S. NIH Grant/Contract)

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

UNDECIDED

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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