Project THINK: Trajectories of Health, Ingestive Behaviors, and Neurocognition in Kids

NCT ID: NCT04701671

Last Updated: 2025-12-10

Study Results

Results pending

The study team has not published outcome measurements, participant flow, or safety data for this trial yet. Check back later for updates.

Basic Information

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Recruitment Status

RECRUITING

Total Enrollment

180 participants

Study Classification

OBSERVATIONAL

Study Start Date

2020-12-10

Study Completion Date

2028-05-09

Brief Summary

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Overweight/obesity and loss of control eating (characterized by the sense that one cannot control what or how much one is eating) are prevalent among children and adolescents, and both are associated with serious medical and psychosocial health complications. Although our recently published data suggest that youth with these conditions may have relative deficits in neurocognitive functioning, particularly working memory, understanding of how these processes and their neural correlates are related to change and stability in eating and weight-related outcomes over time is limited, thereby impeding development of targeted, optimally timed interventions. The present study aims to assess prospective associations between general and food-specific executive functioning and underlying neural substrates, and eating and weight outcomes among children at varying levels of risk overweight/obesity and eating disorders, which will help guide research efforts towards the development of effective prevention and intervention strategies.

Detailed Description

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The current study will examine prospective associations among general and food-specific EF and related neural substrates, and the developmental course of weight gain and LOC eating from middle childhood through early adolescence. Specific aims are to:

1. Investigate prospective associations between general and food-specific EF and z-BMI trajectories. We expect that across risk groups, a) poorer baseline performance on both general and food-specific behavioral EF measures will predict steeper z-BMI gain trajectories; and b) worsening general and food-specific EF will track with the steepest z-BMI gain trajectories.
2. Investigate associations between general and food-specific EF and LOC eating trajectories. We expect that across risk groups, a) poorer baseline performance on general and food-specific behavioral EF measures will predict worsening course of LOC eating; and b) worsening general and food-specific EF will track with worsening course of LOC eating.
3. Investigate prospective associations between EF neural substrates and trajectories of z-BMI and LOC eating. We expect that across risk groups, a) greater activation in prefrontal regions associated with EF (e.g., dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, dorsal cingulate, parietal cortex) during general and food-specific WM tasks, and b) smaller decreases in activation of these regions over 18 months, will predict steeper z-BMI gain trajectories and worsening course of LOC eating.

Conditions

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Pediatric Obesity Binge-Eating Disorder

Study Design

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Observational Model Type

CASE_CONTROL

Study Time Perspective

OTHER

Study Groups

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Normal Weight Control, no MRI-scan (30 participants)

Adolescents with a BMI percentile under 85% who are not randomly assigned to undergo MRI scans at baseline and 18-months.

Observational (not including MRI scanning)

Intervention Type BEHAVIORAL

Observational data will be obtained through self-report measures, parental report measures, cognitive assessments, and a semi-structured interview.

Normal Weight Control with MRI-scan (30 participants)

Adolescents with a BMI percentile under 85% who are randomly assigned to undergo MRI scans at baseline and 18-months.

Observational (including MRI scanning)

Intervention Type BEHAVIORAL

Observational data will be obtained through self-report measures, parental report measures, cognitive assessments, fMRI imaging, and a semi-structured interview.

Overweight Control, no MRI-scan (30 participants)

Adolescents with a BMI percentile at 85% or higher who are not randomly assigned to undergo MRI scans at baseline and 18-months.

Observational (not including MRI scanning)

Intervention Type BEHAVIORAL

Observational data will be obtained through self-report measures, parental report measures, cognitive assessments, and a semi-structured interview.

Overweight Control with MRI-scan (30 participants)

Adolescents with a BMI percentile at 85% or higher who are randomly assigned to undergo MRI scans at baseline and 18-months.

Observational (including MRI scanning)

Intervention Type BEHAVIORAL

Observational data will be obtained through self-report measures, parental report measures, cognitive assessments, fMRI imaging, and a semi-structured interview.

Overweight/Obese Experimental, no MRI-scan (30 participants)

Adolescents with a BMI percentile at 85% or higher, who report loss of control eating episodes and are not randomly assigned to undergo MRI scans at baseline and 18-months.

Observational (not including MRI scanning)

Intervention Type BEHAVIORAL

Observational data will be obtained through self-report measures, parental report measures, cognitive assessments, and a semi-structured interview.

Overweight/Obese Experimental with MRI-scan (30 participants)

Adolescents with a BMI percentile at 85% or higher, who report loss of control eating episodes and are randomly assigned to undergo MRI scans at baseline and 18-months.

Observational (including MRI scanning)

Intervention Type BEHAVIORAL

Observational data will be obtained through self-report measures, parental report measures, cognitive assessments, fMRI imaging, and a semi-structured interview.

Interventions

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Observational (not including MRI scanning)

Observational data will be obtained through self-report measures, parental report measures, cognitive assessments, and a semi-structured interview.

Intervention Type BEHAVIORAL

Observational (including MRI scanning)

Observational data will be obtained through self-report measures, parental report measures, cognitive assessments, fMRI imaging, and a semi-structured interview.

Intervention Type BEHAVIORAL

Eligibility Criteria

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Inclusion Criteria

* Not currently taking any medications known to affect weight or appetite
* Free of any current or past medical or psychiatric conditions known to significantly affect eating or weight (e.g., diabetes, bulimia nervosa), with the exception of binge eating disorder
* In the low average range or higher on measures of general intellectual functioning
* Free of any conditions affecting executive functioning (e.g., recent concussion, history of traumatic brain injury)
* Fluent in English, and able to read and comprehend study materials
* Not currently pregnant
Minimum Eligible Age

9 Years

Maximum Eligible Age

12 Years

Eligible Sex

ALL

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Sponsors

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Brown University

OTHER

Sponsor Role collaborator

The Miriam Hospital

OTHER

Sponsor Role collaborator

National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK)

NIH

Sponsor Role collaborator

University of Pittsburgh

OTHER

Sponsor Role lead

Responsible Party

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Andrea Goldschmidt

Associate Professor

Responsibility Role PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR

Principal Investigators

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Andrea B. Goldschmidt, Ph.D.

Role: PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR

University of Pittsburgh

Locations

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University of PIttsburgh

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States

Site Status RECRUITING

Weight Control & Diabetes Research Center

Providence, Rhode Island, United States

Site Status ACTIVE_NOT_RECRUITING

Countries

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United States

Central Contacts

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Erin Stalvey, B.S.

Role: CONTACT

412-586-9066

Chloe Hudson, B.S.

Role: CONTACT

412-586-9082

Facility Contacts

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Erin Stalvey, B.S.

Role: primary

412-586-9066

Provided Documents

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Document Type: Informed Consent Form

View Document

Other Identifiers

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R01DK120597

Identifier Type: NIH

Identifier Source: secondary_id

View Link

STUDY21070033

Identifier Type: -

Identifier Source: org_study_id

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