MENstrual Symptom Tracking to Understand and Assess (Women) Living With Cystic Fibrosis (MENSTRUAL)

Cystic fibrosis (CF) affects men and women equally, but after the onset of puberty, women with CF have a lower life expectancy than men with CF. Despite these known differences, the link between CF symptom trends and the menstrual cycle remains critically understudied. To address this gap, this study will investigate changes in CF-specific symptoms among women with CF to evaluate whether and how they correlate with their menstrual cycle. Specifically, the investigators hope to examine whether CF-related symptoms change throughout the menstrual cycle, what the impact of those symptoms is on quality of life, and how feasible it is to use a period tracking app to track CF-related symptoms throughout the menstrual cycle. Investigators are asking women ages 18-45 with CF, who have regular menstrual cycles, to participate. Study procedures, including online surveys, period tracking, and interview, will take approximately 3 months.

Study Overview

• Status: Completed
• Conditions: Cystic Fibrosis

Detailed Description

To better understand the connection between cyclically driven hormone fluctuations and CF-related symptoms, the investigators propose an explanatory, sequential mixed methods study in which 80 menstruating women with CF will be asked to track their daily CF-related symptoms for three consecutive cycles. From this cohort, the investigators will ask up to 30 women with CF to participate in one semi-structured interview to gather information about the impact of cyclical CF symptoms upon women's daily lives and any strategies they use to manage them. This study uses innovative technology to track CF-specific symptoms with a smartphone app. The investigators' hypothesis is that subjective changes in clinical CF symptoms, including pulmonary and sinus (primary outcome), rheumatic, and gastrointestinal (secondary outcomes), will map onto the phases of the menstrual cycle and will be cyclical in nature; women will report alternative ways in which they manage their cyclical CF symptoms; and the period tracker app will be easy for women to use.

• Study Type: Observational
• Enrollment (Actual): 74

Contacts and Locations

Study Locations

• United States
  • Washington
    • Seattle, Washington, United States, 98195
      • University of Washington

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: 18 years to 45 years (Adult)
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: No

• Sampling Method: Non-Probability Sample

Study Population

Regularly menstruating women with Cystic Fibrosis

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

• Females with CF, ages > or = 18 and < 46 years
• Able to read, speak, and understand English
• Have regular menstrual cycles between 21 and 35 days
• If using oral contraceptive pills, patch, or vaginal ring, must have a monthly withdrawal bleed every 21-35 days
• If on a genetic modulator, must be on steady dose for at least 3 months
• Willing to document daily symptoms (or no symptoms) every day for up to four consecutive months
• Has a functioning smartphone app with capability to load a "period tracking" app or, if no smartphone, is willing to complete a paper diary and mail to research team monthly
• Currently resides within the United States

Exclusion Criteria:

• Not regularly menstruating or no regular withdrawal bleed every 21-35 days (with or without hormonal contraception use)
• Planning pregnancy at the start of, or any time during, the 3-month observation period
• Planning to use a hormonal IUD, subdermal contraceptive implant (such as Nexplanon), or injectable contraceptive (such as Depo-Provera) at the start of, or any time during, the 3-month observation period
• Women on the transplant list or what have had a lung transplant

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Average change of Cystic Fibrosis-related pulmonary symptoms from baseline for each of the four phases of the menstrual cycle (menses, follicular, ovulation, and luteal)	Rating of Mild, Moderate, or Severe in the Clue smartphone app	3 consecutive menstrual cycles (each cycle is 28 days) following enrollment
Average change of Cystic Fibrosis-related sinus symptoms from baseline for each of the four phases of the menstrual cycle (menses, follicular, ovulation, and luteal)	Rating of Mild, Moderate, or Severe in the Clue smartphone app	3 consecutive menstrual cycles (each cycle is 28 days) following enrollment

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Average change of Cystic Fibrosis-related rheumatic symptoms from baseline for each of the four phases of the menstrual cycle (menses, follicular, ovulation, and luteal)	Rating of Mild, Moderate, or Severe in the Clue smartphone app	3 consecutive menstrual cycles (each cycle is 28 days) following enrollment
Average change of Cystic Fibrosis-related gastrointestinal symptoms from baseline for each of the four phases of the menstrual cycle (menses, follicular, ovulation, and luteal)	Rating of Mild, Moderate, or Severe in the Clue smartphone app	3 consecutive menstrual cycles (each cycle is 28 days) following enrollment

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: University of Washington
• Collaborators: University of California, San Diego; University of Illinois at Chicago; Mount Sinai Hospital, New York
• Investigators: Principal Investigator: Sandy Sufian, PhD, MPH, University of Illinois at Chicago; Principal Investigator: Emily Godfrey, MD, MPH, University of Washington

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (Actual): June 1, 2021
• Primary Completion (Actual): April 22, 2022
• Study Completion (Actual): April 22, 2022

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: October 9, 2020
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: November 2, 2020
• First Posted (Actual): November 6, 2020

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Actual): May 22, 2023
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: May 18, 2023
• Last Verified: May 1, 2023

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Keywords: Cystic Fibrosis; Menstrual Cycle
• Additional Relevant MeSH Terms: Digestive System Diseases; Pathologic Processes; Respiratory Tract Diseases; Lung Diseases; Infant, Newborn, Diseases; Genetic Diseases, Inborn; Pancreatic Diseases; Fibrosis; Cystic Fibrosis
• Other Study ID Numbers: STUDY00009993; GODFRE20A0 (Other Grant/Funding Number: Cystic Fibrosis Foundation)

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

• Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?: NO

Drug and device information, study documents

• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product: No
• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product: No