App-delivered Sleep ThERapy for Older Individuals With Insomnia

NCT ID: NCT05067569

Last Updated: 2025-12-22

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

Get a concise snapshot of the trial, including recruitment status, study phase, enrollment targets, and key timeline milestones.

Recruitment Status

COMPLETED

Clinical Phase

NA

Total Enrollment

270 participants

Study Classification

INTERVENTIONAL

Study Start Date

2022-10-01

Study Completion Date

2025-04-30

Brief Summary

Review the sponsor-provided synopsis that highlights what the study is about and why it is being conducted.

This randomised, open, parallel controlled trial aims to compare the efficacy of a digital brief behavioural therapy for insomnia (dBBTi) against online sleep health education on insomnia symptom severity in older adults aged 60 years and over. The trial will be totally online with participants recruited from the community across Australia.

Detailed Description

Dive into the extended narrative that explains the scientific background, objectives, and procedures in greater depth.

Insomnia is a highly prevalent sleep disorder affecting up to 10% of the adult population and reports of over 40% in the older population. Current insomnia treatments focus heavily on symptom management with cognitive behavioural therapy for insomnia (CBTi), in both digital and face-to-face form as the recommended first-line treatment. Despite the strong evidence for digital CBTi, there are a lack of data related to older people and whether digital brief behavioural therapy is efficacious in this population.

The investigators will conduct a fully online study comparing 6-weeks of digital brief behavioural therapy for insomnia (dBBTi) against online sleep health education. Participants will be recruited, screened and determined eligibility and consent will be conducted online. Thereafter, participants will be randomly allocated to either dBBTi delivered via a mobile application called SleepFix or wait-listed control. The SleepFix app delivers sleep restriction therapy using a 4 stage approach to improve sleep efficiency. The control will consist of 3 online sleep health education modules provided bi-weekly with information about sleep and sleep hygiene without any specific insomnia therapy. Participants will be recruited using social media and directed to a website to determine eligibility and then provided access to either the dBBTi (SleepFix) or the control with a link to the first online module.

At baseline, all participants will complete self-reported measures of insomnia, sleep, fatigue, sleepiness , anxiety, depression, quality of life, cognition and digital health literacy. These will be repeated at follow-up at weeks 8, 16 and 26.

Conditions

See the medical conditions and disease areas that this research is targeting or investigating.

Insomnia

Keywords

Explore important study keywords that can help with search, categorization, and topic discovery.

sleep digital older people brief behavioural therapy

Study Design

Understand how the trial is structured, including allocation methods, masking strategies, primary purpose, and other design elements.

Allocation Method

RANDOMIZED

Intervention Model

PARALLEL

Participants will be provided with a digital brief behavioural therapy (SleepFix app) which provides personalised sleep retraining therapy. Participants will also be provided a sleep-tracking wearable device (Fitbit) that synchronises the going to bed and getting out of bed times with the SleepFix app. Participants will complete a daily sleep diary and can modify the sleep-tracking wearable device sleep data. The program will provide an individualised sleep window of when to go and when to get out of bed. There are five stages focusing on bed timings, sleep efficiency and a maintenance phase for consolidating the new sleep pattern. The program provides information related to sleep hygiene and stimulus control. This will be available for participants for 6 weeks. An active wait-listed control of sleep health education will consist of 3 modules delivered biweekly of generalised sleep health information that could be found on the internet.
Primary Study Purpose

TREATMENT

Blinding Strategy

SINGLE

Investigators
Participants will not be blinded as they will know what treatment they receive. This is typical of behavioural interventions.

Note: the study project coordinator will not be blinded as they will be managing the study such as sending sleep-tracking wearable devices to the intervention arm and communicating with participants. All investigators and data analysts will be blinded.

Study Groups

Review each arm or cohort in the study, along with the interventions and objectives associated with them.

Digital brief behavioural therapy for insomnia

Participants randomised to the digital brief behavioural therapy for insomnia (SleepFix app) will be provided an unique access code to download the app. The intervention uses sleep retraining therapy to reduce excess time spent in bed and retrain sleep by matching time in bed (minimum of five and a half hours) to total sleep time. All participants in the intervention arm will also be provided a sleep-tracking wearable device (Fitbit) which will synchronised bed times (going to bed and rising) and are synchronised with the SleepFix app. Participants wil complete a daily sleep diary, rate sleep quality and mood. The intervention is provided for 6 weeks.

Group Type EXPERIMENTAL

SleepFix mobile application

Intervention Type BEHAVIORAL

The SleepFix app is a novel, innovative way to deliver digital brief behavioural therapy for insomnia for adults.

Sleep Health Education wait-list control

Participants randomised to the control group will gain access to the first Sleep Health Education module immediately following completion of baseline questionnaires. There are three modules provided bi-weekly with information about sleep health and broad details about managing sleep disturbances. Participants will receive a link to this information as each module is made available.

Upon completion of the study (week 26), the control group will receive free access to the SleepFix mobile application.

Group Type ACTIVE_COMPARATOR

Sleep Health Education

Intervention Type BEHAVIORAL

These internet-based modules provide an active control intervention consisting of 3 modules provided bi-weekly. The participant will receive a link to this information as each module is made available. Control participants will have full access to these modules for the duration of the study. They reflect basic educational information regarding sleep health for poor sleepers that is otherwise easily accessible on the internet.

Interventions

Learn about the drugs, procedures, or behavioral strategies being tested and how they are applied within this trial.

SleepFix mobile application

The SleepFix app is a novel, innovative way to deliver digital brief behavioural therapy for insomnia for adults.

Intervention Type BEHAVIORAL

Sleep Health Education

These internet-based modules provide an active control intervention consisting of 3 modules provided bi-weekly. The participant will receive a link to this information as each module is made available. Control participants will have full access to these modules for the duration of the study. They reflect basic educational information regarding sleep health for poor sleepers that is otherwise easily accessible on the internet.

Intervention Type BEHAVIORAL

Eligibility Criteria

Check the participation requirements, including inclusion and exclusion rules, age limits, and whether healthy volunteers are accepted.

Inclusion Criteria

1. Older adults aged ≥ 60 years
2. Able to give informed online consent
3. Insomnia Severity Index ≥ 10, including a score of 3 in at least one of the first three items (nocturnal symptoms).
4. English fluency
5. Access to a smartphone and willingness/proficiency to use a mobile app

Exclusion Criteria

1. Shift-workers
2. Travel to a destination with \>2 hours time-difference (within 30-days)
3. Serious medical and/or psychiatric illnesses/disorders or self-harm risk (Patient Health Questionnaire-9, item 9, 1+ score of risk of suicidal ideation)
4. Diagnosed sleep disorders other than insomnia
5. Regular sleep medications or sleep devices (\>2 times a week over last 6 months)
6. Currently receiving or previously received (within the last 12 months) psychotherapy for insomnia including Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT).
7. Drive for work/operate heavy machinery
Minimum Eligible Age

60 Years

Eligible Sex

ALL

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Sponsors

Meet the organizations funding or collaborating on the study and learn about their roles.

University of Sydney

OTHER

Sponsor Role collaborator

Woolcock Institute of Medical Research

OTHER

Sponsor Role lead

Responsible Party

Identify the individual or organization who holds primary responsibility for the study information submitted to regulators.

Responsibility Role SPONSOR

Principal Investigators

Learn about the lead researchers overseeing the trial and their institutional affiliations.

Ronald Grunstein, MD, PhD

Role: PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR

Woolcock Institute of Medical Research

Christopher Gordon, PhD

Role: PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR

University of Sydney

Locations

Explore where the study is taking place and check the recruitment status at each participating site.

Woolcock Institute of Medical Research

Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

Site Status

Countries

Review the countries where the study has at least one active or historical site.

Australia

Related Links

Access external resources that provide additional context or updates about the study.

https://www.woolcock.org.au/

Woolcock Institute of Medical Research

https://www.sydney.edu.au/medicine-health/

Faculty of Medicine and Health, The University of Sydney

Other Identifiers

Review additional registry numbers or institutional identifiers associated with this trial.

X21-0265

Identifier Type: -

Identifier Source: org_study_id