Trial Outcomes & Findings for Mental Stress Reduction in Defibrillator Patients (NCT NCT00624520)

NCT ID: NCT00624520

Last Updated: 2014-12-22

Results Overview

Maximum Mental Stress induced elevation in "Double Product" , (equal to Heart Rate , beats/minute, x Systolic Arterial Blood Pressure, mmHg), following serial heart rate and blood pressure measurements during mental stress task of mental arithmetic (serial subtraction). Heart rate and blood pressure responses were recorded at 2.5 minute intervals before , during, and after each test using a Philips automated blood pressure recording device. The math task was applied for 10 minutes, with 10 minutes recovery time. An average of 3 measurements was taken as baseline prior to stress tasks. Stress induced double product elevations were measured as the difference between baseline and maximal values in units of mmHg.beats/minute. Higher values represent a greater mental stress induced effect, and lower values, a lower effect.

Recruitment status

TERMINATED

Study phase

PHASE3

Target enrollment

129 participants

Primary outcome timeframe

Immediate to 6 months post intervention

Results posted on

2014-12-22

Participant Flow

Recruitment commenced October 2009, completed December 2011 Recruitment from Cardiology Clinics W S Middleton Veterans Hospital, Madison, and Zablocki VA Medical Center, Milwaukee

Some enrolled participants were excluded from the trial if determined to have severe mental illness after administration of an SCID-I questionnaire and/or interview by a clinical psychologist. Others were excluded as drop-outs due to travel issues, weather, family issues, and illness. 2 subjects died before group assignment.

Participant milestones

Participant milestones
Measure
Cognitive Behavioral Stress Management
10 week program of Cognitive Behavioral Stress Management (CBSM) group sessions Cognitive Behavioral Stress Management (CBSM): 10 week program of weekly CBSM therapy group sessions
Patient Education
10 week program of once weekly Patient Education group sessions Patient Education: 10 week program of "Patient Education" group sessions, involving presentations of educational materials relating to heart disease.
Overall Study
STARTED
56
47
Overall Study
COMPLETED
44
39
Overall Study
NOT COMPLETED
12
8

Reasons for withdrawal

Reasons for withdrawal
Measure
Cognitive Behavioral Stress Management
10 week program of Cognitive Behavioral Stress Management (CBSM) group sessions Cognitive Behavioral Stress Management (CBSM): 10 week program of weekly CBSM therapy group sessions
Patient Education
10 week program of once weekly Patient Education group sessions Patient Education: 10 week program of "Patient Education" group sessions, involving presentations of educational materials relating to heart disease.
Overall Study
Withdrawal by Subject
12
7
Overall Study
Death
0
1

Baseline Characteristics

Mental Stress Reduction in Defibrillator Patients

Baseline characteristics by cohort

Baseline characteristics by cohort
Measure
Cognitive Behavioral Stress Management
n=56 Participants
10 week program of Cognitive Behavioral Stress Management (CBSM) group sessions Cognitive Behavioral Stress Management (CBSM): 10 week program of weekly CBSM therapy group sessions
Patient Education
n=47 Participants
10 week program of once weekly Patient Education group sessions Patient Education: 10 week program of "Patient Education" group sessions, involving presentations of educational materials relating to heart disease.
Total
n=103 Participants
Total of all reporting groups
Age, Continuous
65.7 Years
STANDARD_DEVIATION 9.0 • n=93 Participants
66.2 Years
STANDARD_DEVIATION 8.6 • n=4 Participants
65.7 Years
STANDARD_DEVIATION 8.9 • n=27 Participants
Age, Categorical
<=18 years
0 Participants
n=93 Participants
0 Participants
n=4 Participants
0 Participants
n=27 Participants
Age, Categorical
Between 18 and 65 years
32 Participants
n=93 Participants
23 Participants
n=4 Participants
55 Participants
n=27 Participants
Age, Categorical
>=65 years
24 Participants
n=93 Participants
24 Participants
n=4 Participants
48 Participants
n=27 Participants
Sex: Female, Male
Female
0 Participants
n=93 Participants
1 Participants
n=4 Participants
1 Participants
n=27 Participants
Sex: Female, Male
Male
56 Participants
n=93 Participants
46 Participants
n=4 Participants
102 Participants
n=27 Participants
Race (NIH/OMB)
American Indian or Alaska Native
0 Participants
n=93 Participants
0 Participants
n=4 Participants
0 Participants
n=27 Participants
Race (NIH/OMB)
Asian
0 Participants
n=93 Participants
0 Participants
n=4 Participants
0 Participants
n=27 Participants
Race (NIH/OMB)
Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander
0 Participants
n=93 Participants
0 Participants
n=4 Participants
0 Participants
n=27 Participants
Race (NIH/OMB)
Black or African American
5 Participants
n=93 Participants
6 Participants
n=4 Participants
11 Participants
n=27 Participants
Race (NIH/OMB)
White
51 Participants
n=93 Participants
41 Participants
n=4 Participants
92 Participants
n=27 Participants
Race (NIH/OMB)
More than one race
0 Participants
n=93 Participants
0 Participants
n=4 Participants
0 Participants
n=27 Participants
Race (NIH/OMB)
Unknown or Not Reported
0 Participants
n=93 Participants
0 Participants
n=4 Participants
0 Participants
n=27 Participants
Ethnicity (NIH/OMB)
Hispanic or Latino
0 Participants
n=93 Participants
2 Participants
n=4 Participants
2 Participants
n=27 Participants
Ethnicity (NIH/OMB)
Not Hispanic or Latino
56 Participants
n=93 Participants
45 Participants
n=4 Participants
101 Participants
n=27 Participants
Ethnicity (NIH/OMB)
Unknown or Not Reported
0 Participants
n=93 Participants
0 Participants
n=4 Participants
0 Participants
n=27 Participants
Region of Enrollment
United States
56 participants
n=93 Participants
47 participants
n=4 Participants
103 participants
n=27 Participants

PRIMARY outcome

Timeframe: Immediate to 6 months post intervention

Population: Response to Mental Stress by Math Stress Task.

Maximum Mental Stress induced elevation in "Double Product" , (equal to Heart Rate , beats/minute, x Systolic Arterial Blood Pressure, mmHg), following serial heart rate and blood pressure measurements during mental stress task of mental arithmetic (serial subtraction). Heart rate and blood pressure responses were recorded at 2.5 minute intervals before , during, and after each test using a Philips automated blood pressure recording device. The math task was applied for 10 minutes, with 10 minutes recovery time. An average of 3 measurements was taken as baseline prior to stress tasks. Stress induced double product elevations were measured as the difference between baseline and maximal values in units of mmHg.beats/minute. Higher values represent a greater mental stress induced effect, and lower values, a lower effect.

Outcome measures

Outcome measures
Measure
Cognitive Behavioral Stress Management
n=43 Participants
10 week program of Cognitive Behavioral Stress Management (CBSM) group sessions Cognitive Behavioral Stress Management (CBSM): 10 week program of weekly CBSM therapy group sessions
Patient Education
n=38 Participants
10 week program of once weekly Patient Education group sessions Patient Education: 10 week program of "Patient Education" group sessions, involving presentations of educational materials relating to heart disease.
Mental Stress Induced Elevation in "Double Product" by Math Stress Task
6 months post
1693 mmHg x beats/min
Standard Error 343
1137 mmHg x beats/min
Standard Error 228
Mental Stress Induced Elevation in "Double Product" by Math Stress Task
3 months post
1399 mmHg x beats/min
Standard Error 201
1063 mmHg x beats/min
Standard Error 158
Mental Stress Induced Elevation in "Double Product" by Math Stress Task
Immediate post
1514 mmHg x beats/min
Standard Error 246
1538 mmHg x beats/min
Standard Error 224

PRIMARY outcome

Timeframe: 3 months post intervention

Population: Response to mental stress by math task testing at 3 months post intervention, compared with pre-intervention. Within-group comparison is shown for matched pair data. The lower number of participants analyzed than at study entry is due to patient drop-outs during follow-up post-intervention.

Maximum Mental Stress induced elevation in "Double Product" , DP, (equal to Heart Rate , beats/minute, x Systolic Arterial Blood Pressure, mmHg), following serial heart rate and blood pressure measurements during mental stress tasks of mental arithmetic (serial subtraction). Heart rate and blood pressure responses were recorded at 2.5 minute intervals before , during, and after each test using a Philips automated blood pressure recording device. The math task was applied for 10 minutes, with 10 minutes recovery time. An average of 3 measurements was taken as baseline prior to stress tasks. Stress induced double product elevations were measured as the difference between baseline and maximal values in units of mmHg.beats/minute. Higher values represent a greater mental stress induced effect, and lower values, a lower effect.

Outcome measures

Outcome measures
Measure
Cognitive Behavioral Stress Management
n=36 Participants
10 week program of Cognitive Behavioral Stress Management (CBSM) group sessions Cognitive Behavioral Stress Management (CBSM): 10 week program of weekly CBSM therapy group sessions
Patient Education
10 week program of once weekly Patient Education group sessions Patient Education: 10 week program of "Patient Education" group sessions, involving presentations of educational materials relating to heart disease.
Mental Stress Induced Elevation in Double Product by Math Stress Task
Pre intervention
1915 mmHg x beats/minute
Standard Error 263
Mental Stress Induced Elevation in Double Product by Math Stress Task
3 months post intervention
1399 mmHg x beats/minute
Standard Error 201

PRIMARY outcome

Timeframe: Immediate to 6 months post intervention

Population: Response to Mental Stress by Anger-Recall Stress Task

Maximum Mental Stress induced elevation in "Double Product" , (equal to Heart Rate , beats/minute, x Systolic Arterial Blood Pressure, mmHg), following serial heart rate and blood pressure measurements during mental stress of anger-recall task. Heart rate and blood pressure responses were recorded at 2.5 minute intervals before , during, and after each test using a Philips automated blood pressure recording device. The anger-recall test was applied for 25 minutes with 10 minutes monitoring post-test. An average of 3 measurements was taken as baseline prior to stress tasks. Stress induced double product elevations were measured as the difference between baseline and maximal values in units of mmHg.beats/minute. Higher values represent a greater mental stress induced effect, and lower values, a lower effect

Outcome measures

Outcome measures
Measure
Cognitive Behavioral Stress Management
n=44 Participants
10 week program of Cognitive Behavioral Stress Management (CBSM) group sessions Cognitive Behavioral Stress Management (CBSM): 10 week program of weekly CBSM therapy group sessions
Patient Education
n=39 Participants
10 week program of once weekly Patient Education group sessions Patient Education: 10 week program of "Patient Education" group sessions, involving presentations of educational materials relating to heart disease.
Mental Stress Induced Elevation in "Double Product" by Anger-recall Task
6 months post intervention
711 mmHg x beats/minute
Standard Error 232
631 mmHg x beats/minute
Standard Error 292
Mental Stress Induced Elevation in "Double Product" by Anger-recall Task
3 months post intervention
353 mmHg x beats/minute
Standard Error 167
548 mmHg x beats/minute
Standard Error 308
Mental Stress Induced Elevation in "Double Product" by Anger-recall Task
Immediate post intervention
406 mmHg x beats/minute
Standard Error 93
681 mmHg x beats/minute
Standard Error 244

SECONDARY outcome

Timeframe: Immediate post intervention

Population: Serial psychometric scores up to 6 months post intervention Reduced numbers of participants analyzed reflect drop-outs or failure to fully complete questionnaires during follow-up, with inclusion only of participants having accurate and appropriate data.

Psychosocial score of negative mood derived from self-report questionnaires. Scale range was 15-45. Lower values represent better outcome, and higher values represent worse outcome..

Outcome measures

Outcome measures
Measure
Cognitive Behavioral Stress Management
n=39 Participants
10 week program of Cognitive Behavioral Stress Management (CBSM) group sessions Cognitive Behavioral Stress Management (CBSM): 10 week program of weekly CBSM therapy group sessions
Patient Education
n=36 Participants
10 week program of once weekly Patient Education group sessions Patient Education: 10 week program of "Patient Education" group sessions, involving presentations of educational materials relating to heart disease.
State Anger
16 units on a scale
Standard Deviation 2
19 units on a scale
Standard Deviation 7

SECONDARY outcome

Timeframe: Immediate post intervention

Population: Immediate post intervention Reduced numbers of participants analyzed reflect drop-outs or failure to fully complete questionnaires during follow-up, with inclusion only of participants having accurate and appropriate data.

Psychometric score by self-report questionnaire Scale range is 3-29. Lower values represent better outcome, and higher values represent worse outcome..

Outcome measures

Outcome measures
Measure
Cognitive Behavioral Stress Management
n=39 Participants
10 week program of Cognitive Behavioral Stress Management (CBSM) group sessions Cognitive Behavioral Stress Management (CBSM): 10 week program of weekly CBSM therapy group sessions
Patient Education
n=38 Participants
10 week program of once weekly Patient Education group sessions Patient Education: 10 week program of "Patient Education" group sessions, involving presentations of educational materials relating to heart disease.
Tension/Anxiety
8 units on a scale
Standard Deviation 4
12 units on a scale
Standard Deviation 7

SECONDARY outcome

Timeframe: Immediate post intervention

Population: Immediate post intervention Reduced numbers of participants analyzed reflect drop-outs or failure to fully complete questionnaires during follow-up, with inclusion only of participants having accurate and appropriate data.

Psychometric score from self-report questionnaire Scale range is 2-27. Lower values represent better outcome, and higher values represent worse outcome..

Outcome measures

Outcome measures
Measure
Cognitive Behavioral Stress Management
n=39 Participants
10 week program of Cognitive Behavioral Stress Management (CBSM) group sessions Cognitive Behavioral Stress Management (CBSM): 10 week program of weekly CBSM therapy group sessions
Patient Education
n=38 Participants
10 week program of once weekly Patient Education group sessions Patient Education: 10 week program of "Patient Education" group sessions, involving presentations of educational materials relating to heart disease.
Perceived Stress
10 units on a scale
Standard Deviation 6
14 units on a scale
Standard Deviation 8

SECONDARY outcome

Timeframe: 3 months post intervention

Population: 3 months post intervention Reduced numbers of participants analyzed reflect drop-outs or failure to fully complete questionnaires during follow-up,with inclusion only of participants having accurate and appropriate data.

Psychometric score from self-report questionnaire Scale range is 9 to 60. Lower values represent better outcome, and higher values represent worse outcome..

Outcome measures

Outcome measures
Measure
Cognitive Behavioral Stress Management
n=38 Participants
10 week program of Cognitive Behavioral Stress Management (CBSM) group sessions Cognitive Behavioral Stress Management (CBSM): 10 week program of weekly CBSM therapy group sessions
Patient Education
n=38 Participants
10 week program of once weekly Patient Education group sessions Patient Education: 10 week program of "Patient Education" group sessions, involving presentations of educational materials relating to heart disease.
Depression/Dejection
20 units on a scale
Standard Deviation 6
24 units on a scale
Standard Deviation 11

SECONDARY outcome

Timeframe: 6 months post intervention

Population: 6 months post intervention, from ECG recordings during mental stress tasks Reduced numbers of participants analyzed reflect drop-outs or non-diagnostic recordings for HRV analyses during follow-up, with inclusion only of participants having accurate and appropriate data.

Heart Rate Variability measure of cardiac autonomic activity, believed to reflect a combination of cardiac sympathetic and parasympathetic activity. Data are derived from ambulatory ECG recordings during serial mental stress testing (math and anger-recall tasks) using a General Electric MARS Holter analysis system. Time series are created from beat-to-beat intervals, from which frequency domain measures are calculated. Low frequency heart rate variability correlates with cardiac sympathetic and parasympathetic activity. Increased sympathetic activity and/or decreased parasympathetic activity occur in this study population at high risk for cardiac arrhythmia. Normalized units are used, reflecting percentage of total frequency power.

Outcome measures

Outcome measures
Measure
Cognitive Behavioral Stress Management
n=17 Participants
10 week program of Cognitive Behavioral Stress Management (CBSM) group sessions Cognitive Behavioral Stress Management (CBSM): 10 week program of weekly CBSM therapy group sessions
Patient Education
n=23 Participants
10 week program of once weekly Patient Education group sessions Patient Education: 10 week program of "Patient Education" group sessions, involving presentations of educational materials relating to heart disease.
Low Frequency Heart Rate Variability
59 percentage of spectral power
Standard Deviation 19
70 percentage of spectral power
Standard Deviation 21

SECONDARY outcome

Timeframe: 6 months post intervention

Population: Reduced participant numbers reflect drop-outs and exclusion of participants with non-diagnostic recordings for HRV analyses, with inclusion only of participants having accurate and appropriate data.

Heart Rate Variability measure of Cardiac Parasympathetic activity. Data are derived from ambulatory ECG recordings during serial mental stress testing (math and anger-recall tasks) using a General Electric MARS Holter analysis system. Time series are created from beat-to-beat intervals, from which frequency domain measures are calculated. Increased High Frequency heart rate variability correlates with increased cardiac parasympathetic activity. Normalized units are used, reflecting percentage of total frequency power.

Outcome measures

Outcome measures
Measure
Cognitive Behavioral Stress Management
n=17 Participants
10 week program of Cognitive Behavioral Stress Management (CBSM) group sessions Cognitive Behavioral Stress Management (CBSM): 10 week program of weekly CBSM therapy group sessions
Patient Education
n=23 Participants
10 week program of once weekly Patient Education group sessions Patient Education: 10 week program of "Patient Education" group sessions, involving presentations of educational materials relating to heart disease.
High Frequency Heart Rate Variability
41 percentage of spectral power
Standard Deviation 19
26 percentage of spectral power
Standard Deviation 16

SECONDARY outcome

Timeframe: 6 months post intervention

Population: Reduced numbers of participants analyzed reflect drop-outs or non-diagnostic recordings for heart rate variability analyses during follow-up, with inclusion only of participants having accurate and appropriate data. Data are shown for Ratios of Low and High Frequency power shown above.

Heart Rate Variability measure of cardiac autonomic activity Data are derived from ambulatory ECG recordings during serial mental stress testing (math and anger-recall tasks) using a General Electric MARS Holter analysis system. Time series are created from beat-to-beat intervals, from which frequency domain measures are calculated. Decreased Low/High Frequency ratio reflects Increased High Frequency heart rate variability which correlates with increased cardiac parasympathetic activity, which may be beneficial in this patient population. Normalized units are used, reflecting percentage of total frequency power.

Outcome measures

Outcome measures
Measure
Cognitive Behavioral Stress Management
n=17 Participants
10 week program of Cognitive Behavioral Stress Management (CBSM) group sessions Cognitive Behavioral Stress Management (CBSM): 10 week program of weekly CBSM therapy group sessions
Patient Education
n=23 Participants
10 week program of once weekly Patient Education group sessions Patient Education: 10 week program of "Patient Education" group sessions, involving presentations of educational materials relating to heart disease.
Low Frequency/High Frequency Ratio of Heart Rate Variability
1.99 Ratio
Standard Deviation 1.47
4.01 Ratio
Standard Deviation 3.26

SECONDARY outcome

Timeframe: 6 months post intervention

Population: Cardioverter-defibrillator interrogation data between 3 and 6 months post intervention

Cardioverter-Defibrillator therapies for treatment of serious ventricular arrhythmia

Outcome measures

Outcome measures
Measure
Cognitive Behavioral Stress Management
n=38 Participants
10 week program of Cognitive Behavioral Stress Management (CBSM) group sessions Cognitive Behavioral Stress Management (CBSM): 10 week program of weekly CBSM therapy group sessions
Patient Education
n=33 Participants
10 week program of once weekly Patient Education group sessions Patient Education: 10 week program of "Patient Education" group sessions, involving presentations of educational materials relating to heart disease.
Cardioverter-DefibrillatorTherapies
0 percentage of participants
6 percentage of participants

Adverse Events

Cognitive Behavioral Stress Management

Serious events: 9 serious events
Other events: 0 other events
Deaths: 0 deaths

Patient Education

Serious events: 12 serious events
Other events: 0 other events
Deaths: 0 deaths

Serious adverse events

Serious adverse events
Measure
Cognitive Behavioral Stress Management
n=56 participants at risk
10 week program of Cognitive Behavioral Stress Management (CBSM) group sessions Cognitive Behavioral Stress Management (CBSM): 10 week program of weekly CBSM therapy group sessions
Patient Education
n=47 participants at risk
10 week program of once weekly Patient Education group sessions Patient Education: 10 week program of "Patient Education" group sessions, involving presentations of educational materials relating to heart disease.
Cardiac disorders
Death
0.00%
0/56 • 6 to 12 months, from enrollment to study completion
2.1%
1/47 • Number of events 1 • 6 to 12 months, from enrollment to study completion
Cardiac disorders
Atrial flutter
3.6%
2/56 • Number of events 2 • 6 to 12 months, from enrollment to study completion
0.00%
0/47 • 6 to 12 months, from enrollment to study completion
Cardiac disorders
Ventricular tachycardia
0.00%
0/56 • 6 to 12 months, from enrollment to study completion
2.1%
1/47 • Number of events 2 • 6 to 12 months, from enrollment to study completion
Cardiac disorders
Tachycardia
0.00%
0/56 • 6 to 12 months, from enrollment to study completion
2.1%
1/47 • Number of events 1 • 6 to 12 months, from enrollment to study completion
Cardiac disorders
Heart Failure
0.00%
0/56 • 6 to 12 months, from enrollment to study completion
2.1%
1/47 • Number of events 1 • 6 to 12 months, from enrollment to study completion
Cardiac disorders
Dizziness
1.8%
1/56 • Number of events 2 • 6 to 12 months, from enrollment to study completion
4.3%
2/47 • Number of events 2 • 6 to 12 months, from enrollment to study completion
Cardiac disorders
Implantable Defibrillator malfunction
3.6%
2/56 • Number of events 3 • 6 to 12 months, from enrollment to study completion
2.1%
1/47 • Number of events 1 • 6 to 12 months, from enrollment to study completion
Gastrointestinal disorders
Diverticulitis
0.00%
0/56 • 6 to 12 months, from enrollment to study completion
2.1%
1/47 • Number of events 1 • 6 to 12 months, from enrollment to study completion
Gastrointestinal disorders
Esophageal stricture
0.00%
0/56 • 6 to 12 months, from enrollment to study completion
2.1%
1/47 • Number of events 1 • 6 to 12 months, from enrollment to study completion
Gastrointestinal disorders
Abdominal pain
0.00%
0/56 • 6 to 12 months, from enrollment to study completion
2.1%
1/47 • Number of events 1 • 6 to 12 months, from enrollment to study completion
Gastrointestinal disorders
Diarrhea
0.00%
0/56 • 6 to 12 months, from enrollment to study completion
2.1%
1/47 • Number of events 1 • 6 to 12 months, from enrollment to study completion
Vascular disorders
Carotid artery disease
1.8%
1/56 • Number of events 1 • 6 to 12 months, from enrollment to study completion
0.00%
0/47 • 6 to 12 months, from enrollment to study completion
Respiratory, thoracic and mediastinal disorders
Pneumonia
3.6%
2/56 • Number of events 2 • 6 to 12 months, from enrollment to study completion
0.00%
0/47 • 6 to 12 months, from enrollment to study completion
Respiratory, thoracic and mediastinal disorders
Nasal polyps
1.8%
1/56 • Number of events 1 • 6 to 12 months, from enrollment to study completion
0.00%
0/47 • 6 to 12 months, from enrollment to study completion
Vascular disorders
Cerebrovascular Disease
0.00%
0/56 • 6 to 12 months, from enrollment to study completion
2.1%
1/47 • Number of events 1 • 6 to 12 months, from enrollment to study completion

Other adverse events

Adverse event data not reported

Additional Information

Dr Douglas C Russell

Department of Veterans Affairs

Phone: 608-256-1901

Results disclosure agreements

  • Principal investigator is a sponsor employee
  • Publication restrictions are in place