Massage to Increase Well-Being and Immune Function in Dominican Children Infected With HIV

August 17, 2006 updated by: National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH)

Massage to Enhance Well-Being in HIV-Positive Dominican Children

The purpose of this study is to determine whether massage therapy can improve immune status and enhance well-being in children living in the Dominican Republic who are infected with HIV.

Study Overview

Status

Completed

Conditions

Intervention / Treatment

Detailed Description

The incidence of pediatric HIV in the Dominican Republic has been rapidly rising, while antiretroviral therapies are not yet readily available to slow disease progression. There is compelling evidence that massage therapy may enhance immune status and alter the course of HIV disease. Increased immune capacity and improvement in HIV disease progression markers have been demonstrated following massage therapy in HIV infected adolescents and adults, even in the absence of antiretroviral treatments. In studies with premature newborns, increased weight gain, decreased stress behavior, and more optimal cognitive and motor development have been reported following massage treatment. This study will examine the efficacy of massage therapy, an affordable and potentially beneficial complementary/alternative treatment, to promote health and enhance well-being in HIV infected children in the Dominican Republic.

Children will be randomly assigned to receive either massage therapy or standard care/friendly visits twice weekly for 12 weeks. Data will be gathered to assess acceptance, safety, and compliance to massage therapy and to examine whether massage treatment has improved immune function, developmental performance, and behavioral function.

Study Type

Interventional

Enrollment

54

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 Locations

  • Dominican Republic
      • Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic
        • CENISMI/Robert Reid Cabral Children's 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

Ages Eligible for Study

3 years to 7 years (Child)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Genders Eligible for Study

All

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • HIV infection
  • Parent/caregiver signature on consent form

Exclusion criteria:

  • Unknown HIV status
  • Fever, new opportunistic infection, or acute hospitalization within 30 days prior to study entry
  • Massage therapy within 30 days prior to study entry
  • Unable to have massage (e.g., extensive skin lesions)
  • Symptoms of child abuse
  • Child born drug-addicted

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: Factorial Assignment
  • Masking: Single

Collaborators and Investigators

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

Sponsor

National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH)

Investigators

  • Principal Investigator: Gail Shor-Posner, MD, University of Miami

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

March 1, 2003

Study Completion

November 1, 2004

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

October 9, 2003

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

October 10, 2003

First Posted (Estimate)

October 13, 2003

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Estimate)

August 18, 2006

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

August 17, 2006

Last Verified

July 1, 2006

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

  • R21AT001160-01A1 (U.S. NIH Grant/Contract)

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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